OhioHealth to Partner with Battelle and Columbus Recreation and Parks Department to Expand Healthcare Access

OhioHealth, Battelle and the Linden Community Center, a facility within the Columbus Recreation and Parks Department, are partnering together to bring high quality healthcare services to the Linden Community.

“Improving the health of those we serve is our mission, and we are proud to be a healthcare partner in Linden, a community seeing a real need for easily accessible healthcare services,” said Steve Markovich, MD, OhioHealth President and Chief Executive Officer.

Sponsored in part by a generous $250,000 gift from Battelle, OhioHealth’s newest Wellness on Wheels mobile unit will provide healthcare services at the Linden Community Center five days per week beginning in May of 2021. The multidisciplinary healthcare team on the mobile unit will provide a rotating schedule of women’s health and primary care clinics. Clinics will run from 8:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. and will be staffed by OhioHealth clinical resources, including:

• Provider (Physician or Advanced Practice Provider)
• Nurse
• Medical Assistant
• Community Health Worker
• Social Worker

“We are extremely grateful for Battelle’s generous support and ongoing partnership that will allow OhioHealth to increase access to healthcare services in Linden. Our hope is that providing primary and women’s healthcare close to home will help community members access high- quality care in their neighborhood with providers they trust,” said Karen Morrison, President of the OhioHealth Foundation and OhioHealth Senior Vice President of External Affairs.

This newly built mobile unit has two full-service exam rooms and capabilities to provide prenatal care, primary care, ultrasound, lab services and other wellness services.

The new Linden Community Center is a focal point in the neighborhood. The 55,000 square foot facility opened in March 2021. It offers partner programming based on the centers for opportunity service-delivery model, a WIC clinic, a music studio, an elevated walking track, a classroom space for workforce development classes and a parking pad for mobile units.

This partnership marks another way OhioHealth and Battelle have collaborated.

“Our relationship with Battelle has been invaluable,” said Dr. Markovich. “In addition to their generous donation to help us provide care in the Linden community, they have also been a partner to us and many other healthcare organizations nationwide during the COVID-19 pandemic by using their innovative technology to decontaminate millions of N95 masks for frontline providers. They are an organization that truly cares about making the world a better place.”

“We are grateful for the partnership with OhioHealth in advancing research to a clinical setting and it truly underscores the commitment of both organizations to supporting the goal of supporting care in underserved parts in our community,” said Matt Vaughan, Battelle’s President of Contract Research.

Social Determinants of Health

Wellness on Wheels will serve as a connection point for patients who are seeking services to address various social determinants of health, such as education, food, housing, transportation, dental care, pediatric care, abuse and more.

When patients show certain risk factors, community health workers on the mobile unit will coordinate assistance from both community partners and the Pathways HUB, a program managed by the Healthcare Collaborative of Greater Columbus.

Workforce Development and Digital Expansion

Workforce development will also be prioritized as part of this innovative project to help expand employment opportunities within OhioHealth for Linden residents. It will be structured after the current “Career Bridges” partnership with Godman Guild housed at the Reed Avenue Center.

The goal is to provide residents with a direct connection to careers at OhioHealth.

OhioHealth will also focus on digital integration within Linden, with the goal of providing care to residents using digital solutions. This will help Linden residents to access healthcare outside traditional brick and mortar options. To make it happen, OhioHealth will partner with Spectrum to connect digitally with residents.

About OhioHealth  

Based in Columbus, Ohio, OhioHealth is a nationally recognized, not-for-profit, charitable, healthcare outreach of the United Methodist Church.

Serving its communities since 1891, it is a family of 35,000 associates, physicians and volunteers, and a network of 12 hospitals, 200+ ambulatory sites, hospice, home-health, medical equipment and other health services spanning a 47-county area. It has been recognized by FORTUNE as one of the “100 Best Companies to Work For” 14 times since 2007. 

OhioHealth hospitals include OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital, OhioHealth Grant Medical Center, OhioHealth Doctors Hospital, OhioHealth Grady Memorial Hospital, OhioHealth Dublin Methodist Hospital, OhioHealth Hardin Memorial Hospital, OhioHealth Marion General Hospital, OhioHealth O’Bleness Hospital, OhioHealth Mansfield Hospital, OhioHealth Shelby Hospital, OhioHealth Grove City Methodist Hospital and OhioHealth Berger Hospital. For more information, please visit our website at www.ohiohealth.com.

About Battelle

Every day, the people of Battelle apply science and technology to solving what matters most. At major technology centers and national laboratories around the world, Battelle conducts research and development, designs and manufactures products, and delivers critical services for government and commercial customers. Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio since its founding in 1929, Battelle makes the world better by commercializing technology, giving back to our communities, and supporting science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education. For more information, visit www.battelle.org.

About Columbus Recreation and Parks Department

Columbus Recreation and Parks Department’s mission is to connect the people of the community through the power of nature, wellness and creativity. With nearly 400 parks, 29 community centers, five athletic complexes, six golf courses, 30 pollinator gardens, 13,600 acres of parkland and 230 miles of regional trails, the department’s vision is to ensure every resident has access to all services. The facilities and parks are open to all, embedded in neighborhoods and serve as gathering places for every member of the Central Ohio community. For more information, visit www.columbus.gov/recreationandparks/.

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