August 31, 2021 – Advocate Sherman Hospital (Elgin, IL) announced it would put a hold on elective surgeries for almost three weeks due to a lack of anesthesia providers.
In a statement, the hospital’s parent company, Advocate Aurora Health, said it would “continue to provide care for urgent and emergent situations, and it is critical that patients seek care when needed.”
The statement said labor and delivery services will continue without interruption and that they are “rescheduling noncritical or elective procedures to other Advocate Aurora Health locations until Sept. 20 at the latest due to a shortage of anesthesia providers.
According to the Daily Herald, the hospital could not reach a contract agreement with its longtime anesthesia provider.
Dr. Sanjay Sutaria said his company, United Anesthesia Associates (Elgin, IL) had been working with Sherman Hospital for 30 years to provide anesthesia services. He said they had been negotiating with Advocate for more than a year and half on a contract before the hospital chain decided to go with another provider.
Advocate Aurora Health did not comment on the reason for the shortage in anesthesia providers.