The big picture: Twenty-six Intermountain Health hospitals earned high-performing maternity care recognition from U.S. News and World Report, including many serving rural communities.
Why it matters: Rural maternity care requires more than good intentions. It demands clear standards, real-time coordination, and immediate access to specialists.
How it works:
- Care leveling: Each hospital defines what services it can safely provide, ensuring patients deliver in the right setting.
- Virtual neonatal support: Cameras over resuscitation beds allow neonatologists to guide rural teams through complex deliveries in real time.
- One-call access: Any hospital can connect to maternal fetal medicine physicians and neonatologists within two to three minutes.
The bottom line: “We want you to get the best care possible, as close to home as possible,” says Dr. Sean Esplin, senior medical director of women’s health at Intermountain Health. That combination of local care and systemwide support is what makes rural maternity care work.
What they’re saying: Dr. Esplin recalls a partner who stayed on the phone with a small rural hospital through a serious complication, guiding them step by step until the patient could be safely transported. “With one call, one number, any hospital in our system can get expertise and experience that you don’t always get everywhere.”