Lodi Hospital celebrates 100 years

LODI — Lodi Hospital turns 100 years old Sunday, and it continues to serve as a local lifeline atypical for smaller communities. Hospital officials had planned a large ceremony that welcomed in the public, but those plans have been put on hold by the COVID-19 pandemic. Hopes remain to hold a smaller celebration for employees on a later date. Still, many remain proud of the small community hospital that punches above its weight. "I'm constantly impressed with all of our departments," said Charlene Bunner, manager of surgical services and community health. "We still don't know what the fall is going to look like, but we do know that we want to do something special for everyone who works so hard in this building. "We don't want to let this date pass by and do nothing but whatever we eventually do will be a small celebration within the hospital." Lodi Hospital began as a Victorian home overlooking the intersection of state Routes 224 and 42. Initially called the Smith-Southard Home and used as a sanitarium for mild cases of mental illness, the house was later turned into a makeshift typhoid clinic in 1915 after doctors lobbied owner Col. Leroy Smith to use half of available beds for treatment. The home was originally built in 1873 by G.W. Jason. Since its acceptance of typhus patients and later opening up broader treatment in 1920, the site has served as Lodi's hospital, according to the Lodi-Harrisville Historical Society. Numerous expansions and remodels formed the building standing today at 225 Elyria St. Two lion statues greeting visitors at the hospital's outpatient entrance are the final remnants of the original structure. Hitching posts can also still be found and are regularly put in use by the Amish community. Lodi Mayor Rob Geissman was quick to point out how drastically ambulance run times are cut by having the hospital within a mile of at-the-ready EMS personnel. "Sometimes we're talking as little as five to 10 minutes between a call coming in and someone being at the emergency room," he said. "Those are phenomenal response times and that's thanks to our first responders and the men and women at that hospital. "That hospital is our major hub in town and not many villages can say that have something like that." Christi Banasek, manager of rehab services for the past 24 years, said some patients have formed social circles in the building. "It's nice to treat people from your own community," she said. "We've had a bridge club that meets two times a month in our cafeteria. Obviously, that hasn't been going on lately, but I'd say that 70 or 80 percent of those ladies have been patients here. Having the hospital here in town helps everyone look at each other as human beings and not just as patients, doctors, and nurses." Lodi Hospital was purchased in 2000 by Akron General Hospital with both buildings now flying under the Cleveland Clinic banner. Those partnerships as well as gaining approval in 2001 as an accredited Critical Access Hospital (CAH) have been vital in keeping life-saving services and needed medical supplies available in Lodi, said 28-year nurse Cindy Malloy. "We haven't had any problems with supplies, even during this response to COVID," she said. "I don't think that would have been possible without the Cleveland Clinic. Thinking back to before Akron took over, it had become kind of slow here and we even had to close our surgery center." A CAH designation, given to rural hospitals by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, was introduced by Congress in 1997 following a string of rural hospital closures during the 1980s and early 1990s. The program is designed to reduce the financial vulnerability of rural hospitals and improve access to health care by keeping essential services in those communities. To accomplish this goal, CAHs receive certain benefits such as cost-based reimbursement for Medicare services. "Those reimbursements are a huge reason we can stay in this area," Bunner said. "Lodi Hospital is just a valuable part of part of this community and we're very, very happy to be here." The hospital carried out its latest addition in 2018 and is planning construction of a new lab as well as parking lot improvements. Continued services include a 24-hour emergency room, primary care, radiology, rehabilitation and outpatient surgery. "At a community health screening we held in recent years, we recognized very high blood pressure in a patient and a nurse decided to act quickly," Bunner said. "That person ended up being diagnosed with a severe autoimmune disease. "Without having access to that screening from a local facility, they may have had a much worse outcome." Contact reporter Jonathan Delozier at (330) 721-4050 or jdelozier@medina-gazette.com.