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By the numbers
2,500: Community Mercy Health Partners workers in the region
4th: Mercy Health, parent of CMHP, is the fourth-largest employer in the state.
400: Wittenberg University faculty and staff members
Two of Clark County’s largest employers are exploring opportunities to develop new partnerships that could lead to new academic programs, health services for students and staff members and other agreements that could benefit the community.
Wittenberg University and Community Mercy Health Partners both pledged Tuesday to develop new partnerships that could mean everything from new internships for students to training and rehabilitation services for Wittenberg athletes.
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Both entities stressed the discussions remain in the early stages. But the partnership could impact all of Springfield, said Sherry Nelson, chief nursing officer and vice president of patient services at Community Mercy.
“This is a monumental occasion for Springfield,” Nelson said. “It is about partnership and collaboration. For us to be partners is only going to benefit everyone, for now and in the future.”
Community Mercy employs about 2,500 workers in the region, while Wittenberg employs more than 400 faculty and staff.
While specific programs are still in the development stages, both sides are already meeting regularly to discuss everything from new academic programs in Allied Health to shared services like a health insurance program that could provide more options for students, faculty and staff, said Dick Helton, Wittenberg University’s interim president.
“The door is open for all these discussions,” Helton said.
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The two entities already have a relationship that stretches back several years when Excel Sports Medicine began providing some services on Wittenberg’s campus. Community Mercy operates the Springfield Regional Medical Center and Mercy Memorial Hospital in Urbana. It’s part of Mercy Health, the largest health system in Ohio and fourth-largest employer in the state.
Wittenberg will break ground next spring on a new Health, Wellness and Athletics facility. One option being discussed would involve CMHP providing training and rehabilitation services to Wittenberg athletes, as well as other schools in the Springfield area.
CMHP also operates the university’s on-site student health center, providing on-campus care with services like access to hospitals, primary care and outreach programs. A subcommittee formed through the new partnership will look at new ways to increase student access to Community Mercy and expand services to faculty and staff members.
It’s not clear why a similar partnership wasn’t developed earlier, but these kinds of agreements are becoming increasingly common in other communities as well, Helton said.
Wittenberg and CMHP have been talking since February or early March this year, but discussions have intensified since then, he said. Helton began meeting with Paul Hiltz, president and CEO of Community Mercy earlier this year.
“Both Wittenberg and CMHP have a long history of outreach in the community,” Hiltz said in a statement. “This affinity partnership has far-reaching possibilities to benefit the entire community.”
Hiltz recently announced he will retire at the end of this year.
“Sometimes you just have to have the right people to move ahead,” Helton said.
Both sides are also discussing new academic programs. For Wittenberg students, it could mean internship opportunities at Community Mercy, improved training and job opportunities after graduation.
It could also mean a pipeline of potential employees for Community Mercy and provide more reasons for talented workers to stay in Clark County after college, Nelson said.
“You have two of the largest employers in the community talking about how to make the community better through a partnership,” Nelson said.
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