Firelands Health leadership development retreat
(Sandusky, OH) Leaders from Firelands Health gathered in the Mylander Pavilion at Jackson Street Pier on Friday for a leadership development retreat. The retreat’s core focus was around community, recognizing guest speakers, including Eric Wobser from The Greater Sandusky Partnership, Makenna Laser from Firelands Forward, Dr. Michelle Clinger from Firelands Counseling & Recovery Services, Nikki Lawrence from BGSU, Jeffery Lawrence from Crossroads and Christine Boesch from OHGO.
"This was a time for us to reflect," said Firelands Health CEO Jeremy Normington-Slay. "As a non-profit community hospital, this day served as a refresher for us to look at the bigger picture."
Guest speakers that shared their perspective to Firelands leaders spoke about housing and shelter, mental health and substance abuse, caring for the LGBTQ+ population, volunteering, and food insecurity. "We serve the broader region in healthcare," explained Normington-Slay. "For us to take a step back and focus on our community and the individuals needs that exist is important to Firelands’ mission." Dr. Kevin Bailey also spoke about a recent mission trip he took to Kenya to help perform orthopedic surgeries for those in need.
In addition to reflecting outwardly at the community, the company also presented some stats that demonstrate its impact on the region. Healthcare entities, specifically nonprofit community hospitals, serve as anchor institutions, especially in rural areas.
- Hospitals rank first in Ohio as the largest employment sector.
- 17% of Ohio hospital employment is supported by rural hospitals.
- Non-profit hospitals generate nine times the value of their federal tax exemption.
- In 2023, Firelands Health generated $282 million in local community benefit, is the largest source for private sector jobs in the community, and created 820 non-hospital jobs overall.
- Among Firelands’ leaders, 65% of them spend time providing community service and 52% are involved in community organizations on various committees and boards.
Firelands Health touts itself as, "big enough to care for you, but is small enough to care about you." The leadership retreat was a reminder to Firelands leaders of why they do what they do. They ended their day picking up litter around the downtown area.
