In a move designed to increase pre- and post-natal services and to address the rising costs of medical liability insurance, the physician practice of Cornerstone Care Valley Women’s Health announced today that it will move its maternity delivery services to UPMC Magee Women’s Hospital in Pittsburgh. The transition is expected to take place in June or July.

That decision means Monongahela Valley Hospital will discontinue delivering babies when the changes by Cornerstone Care Valley Women’s Health take effect. All other women’s services will continue.

Cornerstone Care VWH has been responsible for all deliveries of babies at Monongahela Valley Hospital for the past five years.

“Logistically, the only service that will change for our patients will be on day of delivery, said Walter R. Cox, M.D., senior partner at Valley Women’s Health and a member of the MVH Medical Staff since 1990. “All of our current pre-natal and post-partum services will remain the same. They will, in fact, be enhanced by this decision.

“Consolidating delivery services in one location has been a national trend,” he said. “Our patients will have the support of a labor specialty group and a delivery team specifically designed to address the day of delivery. They are called laborists. And they’ll do it in a tertiary care facility with such extended services as 24/7 attending level coverage of the Neonatology Intensive Care Unity (NICU) which is one of the largest in the State of Pennsylvania. Dr. Andrew Spergel and Dr. Paul N. Cervone will provide delivery services on a rotating basis at Magee.”

“The laborist concept is new to western Pennsylvania but has been used extensively throughout the country,” Dr. Cervone said.

According to The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, physicians have stopped practicing obstetrics at a much younger age and are increasingly quitting specialty training programs. These findings, along with the recent professional liability insurance crisis, especially in Pennsylvania, leave many communities with a shortage of physicians who practice obstetrics.

A potential solution for alleviating some of these conditions is the introduction of a physician whose sole focus of practice is managing the patient in labor. This physician, called the laborist, offers women in labor enhanced care for OB/Gyn practice physicians.

Studies have demonstrated a high degree of patient satisfaction and significant reductions in resource utilization while maintaining strong clinical outcomes through the use of laborists.

“Another advantage to our patients in the mid-Mon Valley will be the availability of a team of Maternal-Fetal Medicine specialists from Magee led by Steve Caritis, M.D.,” said Dr. Cervone. “Mothers with high risk pregnancies will find comfort in knowing that they will be available locally by way of these new initiatives.”

According to The Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine, a Maternal-Fetal Medicine specialist is an obstetrician/gynecologist who has completed two to three years of additional formal education and clinical experience within the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ABOG) approved Maternal-Fetal Medicine Fellowship program. Members of the society have advanced knowledge of the obstetrical, medical, genetic, and surgical complications of pregnancy and their effects on both the mother and fetus.

“We had serious concerns about how we would continue to provide services to our patients in light of the medical liability crisis in Pennsylvania,” said Dr. Cox. “This solution will not only address that problem but it also will increase the services we are able to provide to our patients.”

Dr. Cervone agreed, saying, “Offering earlier pre-natal care, enhanced ultrasound imaging and Nuchal Translucency are services we will soon be able to provide.”

Nuchal Translucency is a pre-natal screening test that uses ultrasound to measure the clear or translucent space in the tissue at the back of a developing baby's neck. That measurement can help assess a baby's risk for Down Syndrome (DS) and other chromosomal abnormalities as well as major congenital heart problems.

“Our gynecological services are unaffected by this decision,” said Dr. Cervone.

Cervone explained that, in addition to pre- and post-natal care, Cornerstone Care Valley Women’s Health will continue to provide women’s services including Pap smears, infertility evaluations and urinary incontinence treatments in its Carroll Township and Rostraver offices.

“We are proud of our partnership with Monongahela Valley Hospital for the past decade and we are confident that the strong relationship will continue,” Dr. Cervone said.

“Monongahela Valley Hospital has done everything possible throughout the years to maintain its maternity service,” said Louis J. Panza, president and chief executive officer of Monongahela Valley Hospital.

“In 2005, Monongahela Valley Hospital delivered babies to only 39 percent of the residents of our primary service area. This is a significantly smaller number than many of the other services we provide as a health care leader in the community,” he said. “Hospitals have been closing maternity delivery services for years. Just look at the hospitals in western Pennsylvania. It’s an extensive list.

“We do not expect to eliminate any hospital positions as a result of this decision and will continue to expand our services in the areas of pre- and post natal and women-centered services,” Panza said.

“We currently offer childbirth preparation, breastfeeding and Baby and Me sibling preparation classes to our community, both at the hospital and at MVH HealthPLEX in Rostraver and will continue to do so. In fact, in 2004 Valley Women’s Health expanded its practice when it opened new offices at HealthPLEX.

“We offer a wide range of women’s services at HealthPLEX that includes a medically advanced Second Look® mammography system with a skilled and accredited staff,” Panza said. “We certainly will continue with these services to our community and provide new ones such as Nuchal Translucency.”

Dr. Cox agreed.

“One of the basic tenets of the evolution of Valley Women’s Health is to provide quality services to the women of our community with a proficient and dedicated staff,” he said. “We have been able to do that for more than 17 years and will continue to pursue that goal. Our Healthy Beginnings® program has been a very successful and much needed program for our patients. It further validates how we go far beyond routine appointments.”

“Our partnership expansion into Cornerstone Care is another example of that commitment,” Dr. Cervone said. “Last year, we evolved our private practice by joining a federally designated community-based health center.”

“Our team of physician specialists, registered nurse practitioners and ancillary staff is dedicated to bringing new lives into the world and helping all women live longer, healthier lives by providing a continuum of care,” Dr. Cox said.

Cornerstone Care Valley Women’s Health is comprised of Dr. Cox, Dr. Cervone, Dr. Spergel, Marie Faraci, M.D., Deanna Nemec, CRNP, and Melissa Medsger, PA-C.