First, an apology for the brief delay in this update. There was a significant amount of information to review, listen to carefully, and reflect on before choosing words responsibly. I ask for grace as a plain mama doing her very best at honest, thoughtful journalism.

So buckle up, take a breath, and do your best to read until the end (without smoke coming from your ears) because what our community is currently experiencing deserves careful attention.

• A Meeting That Mattered

On Thursday, January 22, an initial community meeting took place where local residents gathered alongside beloved healthcare providers and a small but deeply invested group of women to discuss the pending closure of an irreplaceable treasure in our community: Fort Logan Birthing Spa.

In other news worth celebrating (because it matters) this very unit has just received yet another Women’s Choice Award for 2026. Bravo.

Among those who spoke was Amish midwife Mattie Byler, who shared on behalf of the Amish community:

“Fort Logan Hospital has been a vital part of my life, and my clients’ lives.”

Regarding the proposed relocation of maternity services to Ephraim McDowell Regional Medical Center, she stated plainly and powerfully:

“If we have to go that much farther, it could be a life-and-death situation. It could be very dangerous for the moms and babies.”

For many Amish and Mennonite families, home birth is the norm unless a complication arises...at which point time becomes everything. From the moment a decision is made to seek hospital care, the clock is already ticking. Distance is not theoretical. It is consequential.

• A Model of Family-Centered Care

Dr. Miller of Bates, Miller, and Sims opened with a statement that captured the heart of this fight:

“We have set the vision for how to have a family-centered birth. We take care of mom, the baby, the whole family.”

There is pride (quiet but evident) in being a family physician capable of safely delivering babies. Even more apparent is compassion, something the room clung to as the community listened with hope.

Dr. Miller gave credit to Beth and Jackie, among the unit’s first nurses, and to the community itself -whose word-of-mouth referrals grew not from marketing, but from lived experience.

He then recited the unit’s accomplishments:

Two Women’s Choice Awards

Top 3% nationally

Ranked Best Hospital for Maternity Care

Only six hospitals in Kentucky achieved that distinction and Fort Logan was the only small, critical-access hospital to do so.

This award measures outcomes in critical cases. As Dr. Miller stated simply:

“We passed that test.”

This directly challenges the suggestion that safety is a concern. The community overwhelmingly agrees: a longer drive does NOT equal safer care...especially when the local alternative is staffed by very capable providers who have already proven themselves in a multiple award winning facility. 

• What The Community Stands To Lose

If Lincoln County loses its maternity unit, the impact will extend far beyond Stanford. Surrounding counties including Garrard, Rockcastle, and Casey would be left without practices offering OB services.

This is how maternity deserts are formed and the statistics associated with them are sobering.

This unit is not just for women currently pregnant. It is for generations yet to come.

• The Heart of the Problem: A Promise Remembered

Dr. Miller then addressed what he called the heart of the problem: trust.

When he first came to Stanford, he recalls being struck by the deep mistrust many residents had toward Danville. Community members feared that if Fort Logan were sold, services would eventually be closed and consolidated elsewhere.

Before the sale was ever approved, public assurances were made.

Dr. Miller stated clearly that OB services were explicitly discussed and promised as part of the agreement...alongside surgery and emergency services. He emphasized that he, nor Dr.Sims, would have in any way let the board vote in favor of the sale without those assurances.

Though the Interior Journal did not document OB services as precisely as it could have (limiting potential legal remedies) the intent was clearly stated for understanding by everyone in the room.

Dr. Miller shared a personal story: after the closure announcement, a community leader casually asked his wife how she was doing while out in public. She responded honestly—that the news had left her deeply distressed. Without any prompting at all, the community leader spoke up and said he remembered the meeting as he himself was there. He stated he remembered the discussion. And he remembered the promise to keep OB services.

“I remember the promise made for each.”

Further records partially implied that the Lincoln County Fiscal Court retained the right to repurchase the hospital if any of the three promised services were discontinued -an option that is still being explored.

Even if legal avenues prove limited, the moral obligation remains.

The promise was made openly. It was the condition under which the hospital was sold. To close OB services now is widely felt to be a violation of both intent and trust.

The room was silent. Heavy. The kind of silence that comes with shared grief and restrained anger.

• When Minutes Matter

Dr. Miller addressed the practical realities. An additional 11 miles translates to 20–25 extra minutes for many mothers before accounting for rural roads, weather, traffic, parking, or navigating a larger facility.

“One location does not lessen risk. It raises it.”

Fort Logan has stabilized premature infants (including one weighing just 1 pound, 10 ounces) successfully preparing them for transfer when needed.

If safety concerns truly exist with care provided by Fort Logan Hospital OB, the community is asking for transparency—because the awards, outcomes, and lived experiences seem to tell a very different story.

According to research cited from the Journal of the American Medical Association, communities that lose birthing units experience:

1.More home births
2.More births in hospitals without OB care
3.Higher rates of premature delivery
4.Higher infant mortality rates

Two choices are always better than one.

• Why This Place Is Different

All delivering providers at Bates, Miller, and Sims live within five minutes of the facility.

The same face you see throughout pregnancy is the face that shows up to deliver your baby; a true rarity in modern medicine.

Dr. Miller shared that he once went from standing in his kitchen to holding a safely delivered baby in nine minutes where mom had required a stat c-section. 

“We come quick.”

He also spoke of personal sacrifice. Choosing to not only live farther from his own children and grandchildren in Danville, but also to refrain from visiting because distance matters when patients may need him urgently.

Babies do not wait.

• A Lifeline Worth Protecting

This is not just about unmatched amenities like the birthing tubs, the garden, peanut balls, nitrous gas option for pain relief, or the entire team of Daisy Award-winning nurses...though those DO matter.

This is a lifeline.

Its loss would devastate the community and fracture trust in ways that could take years to repair.

Concerned community members with questions are encouraged to contact the Ephraim McDowell board to express safety concerns and opposition to the closure -particularly David Meade, who serves both as a representative and a board member.

• Standing Together

With over 4,000 signatures (including paper petitions for Amish and Mennonite families) the community is not giving up.

We are asking for:

A. Transparency
B. Negotiation
C. Compassion

If closure cannot be stopped, then at minimum:

1.Phase patients out responsibly
2.Consider a delay
3.Do not strip women of choice during one of the most vulnerable moments of their lives (especially knowing many late stage pregnancies are not accepted as transfers due to liability.)

Local businesses have already voiced concerns about economic impact. The ripple effects will be real.

A family-friendly support rally is planned by a devoted group of women in the community taking place curbside from Bates, Miller, and Sims on:

Sunday, February 8, 2026 and
Tuesday, February 10, 2026 from 12:00–4:00PM

-Heartfelt messages, statistics, and creative posters are encouraged.

The community is shaken—but we are still standing strong...together.

• In Closing

Promises matter. Trust matters. And when a promise is made publicly, received in good faith, and relied upon by generations of families—it carries a responsibility that cannot be measured in dollars alone.

We believe there is still time to do what is right. Time to listen. Time to negotiate. Time to honor both the letter and the spirit of what was pledged to this community.

We stand together—mothers and fathers, providers and patients, Amish, Mennonite, and English families alike—not in anger, but in resolve. We stand with faith that truth carries weight, that unity carries strength, and that compassion can still guide decision-making.

Our babies deserve a safe beginning and our families deserve choice.