The Tucson-based Carondelet Health Network, a chain of Catholic hospitals, has laid off 3 percent of its workforce, officials confirmed Thursday.
The number of employees in the three-hospital system who are losing their jobs amounts to about 100 people, spokeswoman Kate Maguire Jensen said.
She would not say what departments of the company were affected. A company statement says officials focused primarily on improving efficiencies in administrative and related roles while working to avoid affecting direct patient care areas.
The statement says the layoffs “will strengthen the network’s ability for long-term success as a high-quality healthcare provider in the region.”
Carondelet is majority-owned by Tenet Healthcare Corp. of Texas, which acquired the company in September. Minority owners are Dignity Health of California and Ascension of Missouri.
Tenet manages the operations of the network’s three hospitals, two physician groups and outpatient and ambulatory services, as well as other affiliated businesses in Tucson and Nogales.
As part of the ownership change, Carondelet’s status changed from nonprofit to for-profit.
The local chain has two hospitals in Tucson — 400-bed Carondelet St. Mary’s, 1601 W. St. Mary’s Road and the 486-bed Carondelet St. Joseph’s, 350 N. Wilmot Road, as well as a hospital in Nogales, Arizona — the 25-bed Carondelet Holy Cross.
“We have been carefully evaluating staffing levels over the past several months as part of an effort to identify opportunities to achieve efficiencies across our system,” the company statement says.
“We worked very hard to minimize the number of affected employees by first eliminating open positions and realigning certain job functions.”
Officials say they are helping affected employees apply for new positions within the system, transfer to sister facilities, and connect them with other potential employment opportunities in the area.
“We did not make these decisions lightly, and these changes are difficult for us all, but these staffing reductions will allow us to operate more efficiently and position the network for the future,” the statement says.
