By VDC staff

The University of Vermont Medical Center will lose 118 positions as part of a new round of workforce reductions announced Tuesday by UVM Health, while Dartmouth Health is separately eliminating 124 jobs at its flagship medical center and clinics.

UVM Health said 199 positions across its hospital network are affected, while 55 new roles will be created, producing a net reduction of 144 positions and projected savings of $16.8 million.

More than half of the affected positions are at UVMMC. The largest share stems from the closure of one hospital unit and an “alternative care pod,” with patients to be treated elsewhere in the hospital. UVM Health attributed the change to a steady decline in the hospital’s daily patient census.

Other cuts include administrative and support positions. UVM Health shared services will lose 28 positions through restructuring in Human Resources, Information Technology, and Culture, Experience & Community Health.

Central Vermont Medical Center is affected by 24 positions, although 11 are expected to be reposted with revised duties. Helen Porter Rehabilitation & Nursing is affected by 15 positions, seven of which are vacant.

Affected workers will remain employed during a 45-day transition period while they seek other UVM Health jobs. Eligible employees who do not find another position will receive severance.

CEO Dr. Stephen Leffler said UVM Health faces a projected $300 million reduction in revenue over the next several years.

Meanwhile, scores of Dartmouth Health employees learned Monday that their jobs had been eliminated, the Journal-Opinion reported today. Like Dartmouth Health, the JO serves towns on both sides on the Connecticut River. 

Dartmouth Health in Lebanon, NH eliminated 124 filled positions and canceled 303 open positions at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center and Dartmouth Health clinics in southern New Hampshire. The reductions include executive and administrative leadership jobs.

“Patient revenues continue to be outpaced by escalating operating expenses, which have grown by 12%,” Dartmouth Health said. “Labor, supply and drug costs continue to rise, while insurance companies are paying less and taking longer to pay.”

Dartmouth is also eliminating several programs, including Tele-ICU and Tele-ED services, which provide remote intensive-care and emergency-department support. Dartmouth said the programs were financially unsustainable at their current scale without outside support.

The New England Alliance for Health, created in 2009 to foster cooperation among hospitals, behavioral health centers and home health agencies, also is being eliminated. Dartmouth said expansion of its health system and consolidation among participating organizations had reduced the need for a separate alliance.