LCMC Health is shifting the center of gravity for births in Jefferson Parish, unveiling a $14 million plan to consolidate women’s and newborn services at Lakeside Hospital in Metairie and relocate labor and delivery plus neonatal care from East Jefferson General Hospital. System and academic partners say the project will update delivery suites, expand postpartum and neonatal capacity, and is slated to be fully in place by 2027, while East Jefferson converts its current maternity space into additional medical-surgical beds and operating rooms.
According to LCMC Health, the overhaul will bring 10 modernized labor and delivery suites, 30 upgraded mother-baby postpartum rooms and three state-of-the-art operating rooms to Lakeside. Plans also include a 26-bed Level III neonatal intensive care unit, a new six-bed adult intensive care unit and five clinic spaces to house 16 physicians moving from East Jefferson General Hospital. LCMC says the buildout is being designed with Tulane and LSU partners to support both frontline care and training for future clinicians.
As reported by New Orleans CityBusiness, the health system aims to make Lakeside the go-to destination for labor and delivery in Jefferson Parish by 2027. “This investment is about creating the best possible experience for families in this community,” CEO Greg Feirn said, according to the outlet.
What will change at Lakeside
LCMC Health says the consolidation applies only to women’s and newborn services, and that campuses including Touro, West Jefferson Medical Center and Lakeview Hospital will keep their existing maternity units in order to preserve access across the region. Once services move, East Jefferson General Hospital plans to reuse its former women-and-newborn footprint to add 27 medical-surgical beds and three operating rooms. Maternal-fetal medicine specialists will continue to see patients across the system through LCMC’s partnership with LSU Health.
Neonatal care and regional capacity
New Orleans CityBusiness reports that the Lakeside NICU will be staffed by neonatologists from Manning Family Children’s, tying the hospital into LCMC’s wider neonatal network. Separately, Manning Family Children’s has announced plans for a new 60-bed Level 4 NICU at its main campus, a project its leaders say will boost specialized capacity and training opportunities across Louisiana and the Gulf South.
What this means for families and training
Leaders at Manning have said, “This vital investment provides a level of care that doesn’t exist anywhere else in Louisiana or the Gulf South.” The strategy of concentrating subspecialists and neonatal transport at a smaller number of upgraded centers is intended to improve outcomes for the sickest infants and strengthen training pipelines with Tulane and LSU. At the same time, it will mean longer drives for some families on the East Bank who are used to receiving maternity and newborn care at East Jefferson.
Timeline and next steps
LCMC and its academic partners say construction and service moves will roll out in phases as new and renovated spaces come online, with an overall completion goal of “by 2027.” Until specific construction phases and transfer dates are nailed down, officials are urging patients to keep using their current LCMC locations for maternity and newborn care.
