BOISE, Idaho — St. Luke's Health System announced Wednesday that it will be eliminating approximately 2% of total positions.
Amid a wave of layoff announcements made Wednesday for tech and entertainment companies such as Disney, Ebay, Micron and Zoom, the health care system was no exception.
Across the entire St. Luke's Health System, the hospital network employs more than 16,000 people. Which equates to the elimination of roughly 320 jobs.
In a statement, St. Luke's said that it anticipates the mass layoff to primarily impact non-clinical and administrative roles.
The health care system said that it has already eliminated approximately 150 positions through attrition and anticipate an additional 200 currently filled roles to be eliminated by April.
St. Luke's reps declared that they are taking active steps to support employees that are soon to be impacted by the cuts. Some efforts include severance packages and career support.
"We understand that these decisions impact people — our colleagues and often, our friends, whose contributions are valued — which is why this is a difficult decision to reach," said St. Luke's President and CEO Chris Roth.
Roth added that the expenses accrued by St. Luke's are increasing faster than the income the health system is receiving for its services.
"This trend is not sustainable, and we expect significant financial and resource pressures to continue," Roth said. "We have outlined multiple response plans to help ensure our ability to deliver on our mission and advance our performance in this complex environment."
In the press release, St. Luke's attributed the financial woes to "a dynamic and challenging time in the health care industry and within the communities St. Luke's serves." Which reps said is a trend that is expected to continue.
The health care giant states that the pandemic, along with various other global and national factors, have created a wide array of negative impacts upon the health care landscape.
Additional factors include "pent-up" demand for services, workforce shortages, supply chain disruptions and a complicated payment environment not conducive to an efficient process for the patient and recipient.
St. Luke's added that it is not the only health system being impacted by the evolving and continuous challenges, and implied that many other health care systems are experiencing operational and financial impacts that will require adjustments.
"St. Luke's has been thoughtful in ensuring all opportunities are carefully considered," said Roth.
St. Luke's leadership communicated that as part of their overall response plan, additional efforts and actions were made. Some mentioned efforts include:
• Reduced discretionary spending and contracted services, including traveler reliance.
• Accelerated consolidation of real estate holdings to improve efficiency and reduce costs.
• Accelerated investments in programs that expand access to services.
• Trimmed executive leadership positions and slowed hiring in non-direct patient care areas.
• Reprioritized and decreased capital spending.
The health system said that the layoffs will enable the hospital network to reinvest in other areas, particularly with clinical teams and programs.
KTVB verified with the public relations manager for St. Luke's that the employment cuts are indeed across the entire St. Luke's Health System. There was no additional information as to which St. Luke's campuses will be impacted.
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