Mad River Hospital workers warn layoffs, management turmoil threaten patient safety

Workers at Mad River Community Hospital say layoffs and management changes have left Arcata’s 78-bed hospital in a fragile place, with some employees warning that patient safety, staffing stability and day-to-day working conditions are all at risk.

The concerns have come from conversations with a dozen current and recently laid-off workers, who described a deteriorating atmosphere that has spread beyond one department. Nursing staff appeared to be hit especially hard, with morale falling after staffing changes and leadership shifts. Several workers said the tension had been building for weeks, and some employees were already discussing a walkout.

That anxiety matters in Humboldt County, where the hospital at 3800 Janes Road is one of the main medical anchors for Arcata, McKinleyville and nearby communities. California’s health care oversight agency lists Mad River as a general acute care hospital with a basic emergency-room service level and 78 licensed beds. The hospital says it provides emergency services 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and that its emergency room is pediatric-certified by North Coast Emergency Medical Services.

Financially, the hospital is not a small operation. State disclosure data show Mad River reported $49,506,203 in total net patient revenue for the fiscal year from July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024. Outpatient revenue totaled $39,627,035, while inpatient revenue was $9,879,168. For workers, the numbers underscore the stakes: even a modest disruption in staffing or management can ripple through emergency care, routine treatment and referrals in a county with few hospital alternatives.

The hospital has also been through a run of upheaval before this latest round of turmoil. In June 2023, Mad River announced it was exploring a sale to Southwest Healthcare Services, LLC and entered a 90-day due diligence period. On January 29, 2024, the hospital and Southwest Healthcare Services terminated that letter of intent. Around the same time, then-chief executive David Neal was unexpectedly removed, while Doug Shaw remained the hospital’s CEO.

Shaw told a county health-care forum in January 2025 that the hospital would keep investing in people, equipment and facilities. That same forum laid bare the broader strain on North Coast care. County Health Officer Dr. Candy Stockton said the system is frustrating for patients, and Southern Humboldt Community Healthcare District CEO Matthew Rees said Medi-Cal reimbursement can fall far below the cost of care.

Those pressures are landing in a county that is both shrinking and aging. The U.S. Census Bureau estimated Humboldt County’s population at 131,647 on July 1, 2025, down from 136,463 in the 2020 Census, and 21.0% of residents were 65 or older in the bureau’s 2020-2024 estimate. In that setting, workers say what happens inside Mad River will be felt far beyond the hospital walls.