The Olentangy Liberty High School students recognized a gap in the healthcare supply chain and saw an opportunity to give unused medical equipment a second life. This discovery led them to reach out to OhioHealth, where they connected with Jean Halpin, president of OhioHealth Grant Medical Center. Halpin responded to the students’ initial outreach and facilitated the connection with the system’s supply chain team.

“Glad you are doing this work. It saves the planet and helps others in our world,” Halpin told the Project MedBridge team.

That connection helped transform the students’ idea into a large-scale effort to redirect unused medical supplies to healthcare organizations that could use them.

“The supplies already existed, and the need already existed,” said Ben Kurian, team lead and junior at Olentangy Liberty High School. “What was missing was a way to connect the two.”

OhioHealth donated approximately $250,000 of medical supplies to Project MedBridge, including 9,393 boxes of 3M N95 respirator and 20,736 reusable hot-and-cold therapy packs. The supplies donated by OhioHealth are being distributed through Brother’s Brother Foundation, a Pittsburgh-based humanitarian organization that distributes medical supplies and equipment to hospitals worldwide.

“I was encouraged to learn there was an opportunity for these supplies to be utilized by organizations in need rather than being discarded,” Amy McFarland, OhioHealth senior consultant for supply chain, told the Delaware Source. “It is inspiring to see high school students demonstrate such a strong commitment to addressing both healthcare and environmental challenges.”

The students originally set a goal to collect around 1,000 to 2,000 pounds of medical supplies. With OhioHealth’s donation of more than 30,000 pounds the team quickly surpassed that goal and gained national recognition.

“At that point it wasn’t a hypothetical student project anymore. The biggest hospital system in our city was actually trusting us to figure out what happened next,” Vahin Dubey, outreach lead for Project MedBridge told the Delaware Source.

Project MedBridge was selected as one of 71 teams nationwide for the 2026 Carnegie Young Leaders for Civic Preparedness class. As one of only two Ohio teams selected, the students received $7,500 in funding, along with access to a national network for young leaders.

“Being in a room with young people from across the country who were already building serious projects in their communities made it very clear that age doesn’t have to determine the scale of a problem you can take on,” Ben Kurian said. “Not even a week later, we were back in Ohio moving a donation larger than anything we could’ve dreamed of.”

With Project MedBridge’s first donation complete, they have set a new goal of redirecting 100,000 pounds of supplies by the end of 2027.

“This is the first,” said Naman Soni, operations lead for Project MedBridge. “The next step is making sure our work doesn’t stop with just one hospital.”

These supplies have been sent to Ukraine in five truckloads, full of double stacked pallets.  Supplies included:

• Multiple types of dressings
• Wraps
• Masks
• Isolation gowns
• Gloves
• Stethoscopes
• Catheters
• Wipes
• Face shields
• And more

The majority of the supplies went to the Ukrainian Health Ministry Heart Institute in the capital of Kyiv, with the rest going to other hospitals as needed in Ukraine.

“This is truly our mission in action,” said Corey Perry, OhioHealth system VP mission & ministry. “While OhioHealth’s mission is to improve the health of those we serve, we saw an opportunity to expand on that and provide this essential medical equipment to our brothers and sisters in Ukraine who are experiencing an extreme need at this time. It is our honor to be able to help in this way.”

So far, OhioHealth has been UMCOR’s largest donor.

“I’m proud of our team and all they’ve done to sort, pack, and load these supplies to get these products to Ukraine from OhioHealth’s Distribution Center,” said Joshua Dritz, OhioHealth senior director, logistics and sterile processing. “It’s amazing to see this effort come to fruition.”

In this national story from ABC News, the Arlene Campbell Foundation speaks to their efforts. The supplies you see in the story were donated by OhioHealth.

Photo Courtesy: AEC Parcel Service

OhioHealth announced today it will give back a portion of the supplies so generously donated to area hospitals in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In March and April, supplies of critical personal protective equipment (PPE) and other needed items were in short supply due to the worldwide demand and the scope of the pandemic.

Hospitals needed help and the communities came through donating more than 1.1 million items such as face masks, gloves, hand sanitizer and more. Nearly 90 percent of these donated items were able to be used to help protect frontline healthcare workers, or placed in our inventory for future needs.

Today, with PPE and other supplies replenished and becoming more readily available, OhioHealth will donate more than 100,000 items to people in need.

“We were humbled by the outpouring of support and generosity by many friends of OhioHealth that donated items,” said Karen Morrison, president, OhioHealth Foundation and senior vice president, external affairs. “These gifts helped us bridge a difficult period and it was greatly appreciated by our clinical and support staff. The community stepped up to help in a significant way and for that we are forever grateful.”

How it will work in central Ohio

OhioHealth will work with two local organizations on different days to distribute the OhioHealth COVID Care Packages to families and seniors in need.

Media Opportunity:  Wednesday, June 17, 3:30-5:00 pm

YMCA Hilltop, 2879 Valleyview Dr., Columbus

The “drive through” giveaway will take place at the YMCA’s normally scheduled weekly food and produce giveaway which they do jointly with the Mid-Ohio Food Collective.

The OhioHealth Wellness on Wheels unit and OhioHealth volunteers will be on site to distribute the bags and health information.

Dedicated Senior Medical Centers - a partnership between OhioHealth and ChenMed, interested seniors are encouraged to call (614) 803.9000 to schedule a convenient weekday “OhioHealthy” bag pick-up at any of the following three Dedicated locations:

• 5156 East Main Street, Whitehall
• 50 N Wilson Road, Hilltop area
• 2260 Morse Road, Northland area

Dedicated can provide courtesy round-trip transportation on request, and also will be promoting “OhioHealthy” bag pick-ups during a special June 23 coronavirus education telephone town hall to which some 25,000 at-risk Columbus seniors will be invited.

How it will work outside of central Ohio

OhioHealth will donate supplies to partnering organizations in the communities we serves. The agencies listed below will distribute the supplies to those in need.

• Delaware County – SourcePoint
• United Way of Delaware County (Strengthening Families)
• Athens - HAPCAP and Athens City Schools
• Mansfield - Salvation Army Richland County
• Pickaway County Food Pantry and Haven House
• Marion - Marion Technical College
• Shelby - Help Line Ministries

About OhioHealth

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

Based in Columbus, Ohio, OhioHealth has been recognized as one of the top five large health systems in America by Truven Health Analytics, an honor it has received six times. It is also recognized by FORTUNE as one of the “100 Best Companies to Work For” and has been for 13 years in a row, 2007-2019.

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.

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 the YMCA of Central Ohio

The YMCA is one of Central Ohio’s leading nonprofits, empowering youth and families and strengthening communities through Youth Development, Healthy Living and Social Responsibility. We are a diverse association of men, women and children of all ages and from all walks of life, joined together by a shared commitment to nurture the potential of children and teens, improve our community’s health and well-being, and provide opportunities to give back and support our neighbors. As part of the fabric of Central Ohio for over 160 years, the YMCA has long-standing relationships and physical presence not just to promise, but to deliver lasting personal and social change. For more information about the YMCA of Central Ohio, visit www.ymcacolumbus.org

About Dedicated Senior Medical Center and ChenMed

Dedicated Senior Medical Center is a ChenMed company bringing concierge-style medicine — and better health outcomes — to the neediest senior populations in several cities across the country.

ChenMed, a privately owned medical, management and technology company, last year established three Dedicated centers in Columbus in partnership with OhioHealth. A primary care provider of choice for some 20 Medicare Advantage health insurance plans in 10 states, popular ChenMed brands also include Chen Senior Medical Center and JenCare Senior Medical Center.

Inspired by ChenMed Chairman and Founder James Chen, M.D., Ph.D., the company has been serving low-to-moderate-income seniors with multiple complex chronic conditions for over 30 years. Results of ChenMed’s high-touch approach to primary care are impressive, as illustrated in the Modern Healthcare cover story (Oct. 20, 2018), which reports, “Indeed, ChenMed's approach has resulted in 50 percent fewer hospital admissions compared with a standard primary-care practice, 28 percent lower per-member costs and significantly higher use of evidence-based medications.”

The health systems, which include OhioHealth, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Mount Carmel Health System and Nationwide Children’s Hospital, are working together to provide a safe, convenient way to donate needed medical supplies at multiple locations in a way that honors the Governor’s and the State’s directives on social distancing and group gatherings.

Mount Carmel, Ohio State and OhioHealth have opened drive-up, drop-off sites to allow individuals to donate at the following locations:

The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center

The OSU Wexner Medical Center warehouse at 610 Ackerman Road. For more information on how to donate visit: 
https://wexnermedical.osu.edu/features/coronavirus/ways-to-help/donate-supplies

OhioHealth Corporation

OhioHealth Dublin Methodist Hospital Parking Lot

OhioHealth Grove City Methodist Hospital Parking Lot

OhioHealth Westerville Medical Campus Parking Lot

OhioHealth Pickerington Medical Campus Parking Lot

OhioHealth Columbus Donation Center - 830 Kinnear Road, Columbus, 43212

For more information on how to donate visit:
https://www.ohiohealth.com/COVID-19

Mount Carmel Health System

Mount Carmel Corporate Service Center

Mount Carmel Grove City

Mount Carmel St. Ann’s

Mount Carmel New Albany

Diley Ridge Medical Center

For more information on how to donate visit:
https://www.mountcarmelhealth.com/health-and-wellness/covid-19/medical-supply-donations

Nationwide Children’s Hospital

To explore ways to support Nationwide Children’s Hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic, contact Jillean Bastian at Jillean.Bastian@nationwidechildrens.org or 614-355-5400. You will receive more information about where to drop off your donated medical supplies.

The Columbus area healthcare systems have a long history of working together with public health partners and state and local officials to address broad health issues impacting communities across Ohio.

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Media Contacts:

Colin Yoder, OhioHealth

(614) 565-0619

Marti Leitch, Ohio State Wexner Medical Center

(614) 477-1277

Tara Parsell, Mount Carmel Health System

(315) 269-2241

Mary Ellen Fiorino, Nationwide Children’s

(614) 937-7316