SAN ANTONIO – Tyler Morris, a psychiatric registered nurse at the Nix hospital on Babcock, knows he has just about two months to find a new job.
“I just received the letter,” Morris said.
He’s part of the massive layoff happening by default with the closure of 3 Nix hospitals in San Antonio. Nix operates under the Prospect Medical umbrella. The closures affect more than just medical professionals.
“I mean, you have people that work in the cafeteria, you have housekeeping,” Morris said.
Nix is one of several hospital systems that are part of South Texas Crisis Collaborative, a network of facilities that deal with mental health, including the Center for Health Care Services.
Jelynne Leblanc Burley, CHCS president and CEO, said the remaining hospitals in the group have been preparing to absorb the effects of the Nix closures.
Still, there will be a heavy impact.
“It will require our emergency rooms and our crisis centers will have more activity in the coming days and weeks,” Burley said.
Burley also says Nix employees may be able to find jobs at other facilities in the collaborative.
“I know that through the partnership, we all work together, so we’re trying to ensure that our local San Antonians have other opportunities and will stay here,” Burley said.
Meanwhile, Morris who knows his career is in high demand, is less worried about future employment, and more about those who suffer mental crises.
The last Nix facility is expected to close by the end of this month. A Nix spokesperson said any patients not discharged by then will be transferred to other health care facilities in the area. The spokesperson added that there will also be a job fair for impacted employees.
