Providence St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank has cut 94 staff members and closed five health programs amid concerns about rising costs and a decline in patient admissions and surgical volume, not to mention the economic recession. Severance packages, outplacement programs and job counseling will be offered to the employees cut as will offers of employment opportunities in other areas of Providence Health & Services, where available. The Burbank hospital has a workforce of 2,517 employees. In addition to the layoffs, five non-acute hospital programs will be closed or restructured at St. Joseph. Program closures include the Transitional Care Unit and the offsite Urgent, Occupational Health and Diabetic Foot centers. The hospital’s Cardiac Rehabilitation program will be restructured as a supervised exercise program as well. Because these services are available elsewhere in the community, Providence St. Joseph does not foresee that the community’s access to them will be limited.