Throughout central Ohio, small hospitals are opening their doors to see patients, according to The Columbus Dispatch. Often referred to as 'microhospitals,' these facilities generally house eight to 10 inpatient beds and offer outpatient services, emergency care, imaging, labs and pharmacies.
Ohio Hospital Association Spokesperson John Palmer referred to these entities as the "new kid on the block." Mr. Palmer said the uptick in these small hospitals is due to a higher demand for outpatient care. Ohio hospitals had 31 million-plus outpatients in 2015, up from 30 million the year prior.
OhioHealth is one such health system seeing the potential in these facilities. The health system is building a small hospital in Grove City, equipped with an ASC, medical office building and an emergency department. The health system aims to open the facility in 2018.
OhioHealth Grove City Methodist Hospital COO Kevin Lutz, DPM, said, "We've assessed the needs of the community, and we've built the right-sized medical facility to support the needs. This allows us to provide and to spread out and deliver the same high-quality care in a community that these patients would receive if they came to a larger, more traditional hospital."