Modesto hospital tries to keep pediatric unit open so kids aren’t sent off for care
The pediatrics unit at Doctors Medical Center in Modesto has an uncertain future, and that could have ramifications for Stanislaus County families.
The hospital’s 24-bed pediatric unit has been in jeopardy because a contract for physician staffing will expire April 30.
According to people familiar with the unit, the hospital is working on a contract with another provider group to care for patients after April 30. But so far, there is no provider group.
It’s the only pediatric inpatient unit in the community that accepts all insurance coverages, including Medi-Cal. If the unit were to close, local children who need hospital care will be sent outside the county to facilities in Sacramento, the Bay Area or Madera.
The pediatric unit cares for children up to 17 years old, whether it’s respiratory illness in the wintertime, kids recovering from an appendectomy or some other surgery, children who come to the emergency department and need to be hospitalized, or young patients who are regularly seen for chronic conditions.
Sutter Memorial Medical Center, also in Modesto, sends some pediatric patients to DMC if they are not transferred out to a Sutter facility in Sacramento.
“I feel this will be a detriment to our community,” said a hospital source, who asked for anonymity out of fear of retaliation. “For many, this is more than an inconvenience. It becomes a serious barrier to care. A significant portion of our community already faces transportation issues and limited resources. Expecting parents to manage long trips while caring for a sick child is both unrealistic and unfair.”
The situation does not affect DMC’s newborn nursery or neonatal intensive care unit.
Patti Tanner, a hospital spokesperson, said in an email last week that the pediatric unit is not closing, but she did not discuss any details of keeping it open. An official who took over this week as DMC’s interim chief executive officer did not return a message from The Modesto Bee.
A top executive for Golden Valley Health Centers, which provides pediatric hospitalists under the contract with DMC, also did not return messages.
Dr. Silvia Diego, who operates a family and pediatric practice in Modesto, said she understands that interested parties are working on something to replace the contract that expires April 30. But time is running out for finding a solution.
“The pediatrics is being worked on by DMC as Golden Valley moves out,” Diego said by email. “The hospital was working hard on a plan to keep pediatrics seamlessly open.”
Golden Valley, a nonprofit system of community health clinics, also handled pediatric on-call coverage for Sutter Memorial Medical Center in Modesto until a contract expired in October 2025. Memorial has since provided a limited amount of inpatient pediatric services, though emergency and trauma services remain available.
“Gould Medical Group has been actively recruiting more providers to support the hospital’s inpatient pediatrics program and estimates they will be able to cover these services by the fall,” a Sutter Health spokesperson said in an email Friday that acknowledged a shortage of pediatricians.
“Historically, the field of family medicine, which includes pediatrics, hasn’t attracted as many physicians compared to specialty medicine,” the spokesperson said. “Sutter Health is helping drive change with the launch of nationally accredited internal medicine and family medicine physician residency programs at Sutter’s Memorial Medical Center.”
The residency programs aim to broaden career pathways for more physicians to care for patients in the Central Valley.
Pediatricians are stretched thin
Two of the three pediatricians working in the Doctors Medical Center unit resigned in early January, giving advance notice they won’t see patients in the unit after April 30.
Apparently, the main problem was workload for the doctors, exacerbated by the Central Valley’s physician shortage. The pediatricians were working all hours, seeing hospital patients and youngsters in local outpatient clinics.
According to the hospital source who spoke on condition of anonymity, the pediatric unit is most busy during the winter months and does not make money for the hospital. The unit had seven or eight patients Wednesday. In summer months, the unit may close for a few days and reopen, depending on the number of patients.
About 20 nurses work in the pediatric unit.
Though the hospital’s newborn nursery is not affected, the pediatric unit has worked with some babies that are not eating well and not thriving. The staff works on getting their weight up and coordinates with county health services for home visits after the babies are discharged home.
In another sign of trouble for pediatric inpatient care in Northern California, Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital closed its inpatient unit for children last month. According to SFGate, budget challenges and federal cuts to Medicaid were factors in the hospital’s decision.
Benioff Children’s Hospital at UCSF, Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford and UC Davis Children’s Hospital are now the options for Sonoma County children needing overnight hospital care, if they’re not members of Kaiser Permanente.
This story was originally published April 10, 2026 at 1:47 PM.
