New Ohio hospital fills rural health care needs gap

By Nadia Ramlagan

A new Ohio State University Hospital in Columbus is expected to help fill rural health-care gaps in the region.

The new hospital’s executive director, Dennis Delisle, said many local hospitals are limited in technologies and capabilities, noting the new OSU hospital specialists can step in when illness has progressed or surgical needs are more advanced.

'It’s an 820-bed facility," he said. "We have about 230 ICUs within that bed complement. We have 24 operating rooms. We have an expansion of our neonatal ICU and our women and infant services as well."

With a population expected to exceed 3 million by 2050 – an increase of more than 700,000 people – the facility is expected to meet growing health-care needs. So far, more than a third of hospital admissions have come from outside Central Ohio.

Delisle said one goal is using technology to support local hospitals in keeping patients close to where they live. Expertise, consulting and second opinions can all be offered through telehealth.

"The financial challenges are real," he said, "and in many ways, as I described before, with the advanced capabilities that we have with specialists, sub specialists, that's difficult to afford in the rural setting, because you don't see that many patients."

An estimated 146 rural hospitals closed or converted to non-acute care between 2005 and 2023, according to federal data.