SHELLEY HANSON Staff writer
MARTINS FERRY Four hours into East Ohio Regional Hospital’s opening day on Thursday and the facility already had three to four ambulances come in and three patients admitted, according to Bernie Albertini, chief operating officer.
And the facility and its 400 employees are ready for more.
Since last May when it was announced that Dayton-based psychiatrist Dr. John Johnson had purchased EORH, local residents have been eagerly awaiting the day it would open again.
“We made it,” Albertini said with a smile.
EORH and its former sister facility, Ohio Valley Medical Center in Wheeling, were shuttered in fall 2019 by former owner Alecto Healthcare Services of California. It was devastating news for the Ohio Valley not only because of the job losses, but because two major hospitals were now gone.
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EAST OHIO Regional Hospital’s doctors pose for a photo during the facility’s reopening Thursday. From left are Drs. Jeremy Edgmon, Michael Tatro, Tim Genetta and David Shaffer. The hospital had been closed since September 2019.
MARTINS FERRY Within four hours after East Ohio Regional Hospital reopened Thursday, the facility already had received three to four ambulances and had admitted three patients, according to Bernie Albertini, chief operating officer.
And the hospital and its 400 employees are ready for more.
“I’ve been telling people there are no detours on Ohio 7,” Albertini said, referring to the construction-related Interstate 70 detours in Wheeling, home to Wheeling Hospital. “Come see us.”
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Photo by Shelley Hanson
Shown here is the entrance to the East Ohio Regional Hospital emergency room. The hospital is scheduled to open at 11 a.m. today.
MARTINS FERRY The long wait is finally over.
East Ohio Regional Hospital is set to reopen at 11 a.m. today under new ownership, along with a renewed pride and excitement likely felt by the community and the facility’s employees.
Spokesman Mike Garrison said Wednesday employees at the facility had been working day and night to get the facility ready to open its doors and start treating patients again.
“This community, as well as the broader Ohio Valley, deserves to have a solid community-focused hospital. I am very grateful to have the opportunity to reopen EORH and look forward to serving the area for years to come,” said Dr. John Johnson, EORH’s owner.
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File Photo provided from SHELLEY HANSON
Shown here is the entrance to the East Ohio Regional Hospital emergency room. The hospital is scheduled to reopen for business at 11 a.m. today after being closed for about a year and a half.
MARTINS FERRY The long wait is finally over East Ohio Regional Hospital is set to reopen at 11 a.m. today under new ownership.
Spokesman Mike Garrison said Wednesday that employees at the facility had been working day and night to get the facility ready to open its doors and start treating patients again.
“This community, as well as the broader Ohio Valley, deserves to have a solid community-focused hospital. I am very grateful to have the opportunity to reopen EORH and look forward to serving the area for years to come,” EORH owner Dr. John Johnson said.
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File Photo
Bernie Albertini, left, chief operating officer of East Ohio Regional Hospital, and the Rev. William Webster, pastor of Grace Presbyterian Church and chaplain at the hospital, talk before the start of a blessing and dedication ceremony held Jan. 13.
MARTINS FERRY It appears East Ohio Regional Hospital is another step closer to opening for business.
Spokesman Michael Garrison said Monday the facility recently learned it received final approval from the necessary state and federal agencies to begin seeing patients.
An opening date has not yet been set.
“We were very pleased to hear back from both The Joint Commission and the Ohio Department of Health that we have met the necessary regulatory standards for our reopening,” said Bernie Albertini, chief operating officer of EORH. “This will bring us one very important step closer to opening our doors to the community.”