Hospitals to Bring Thousands of Jobs to Ohio

Two new hospitals going up in Columbus, Ohio, will create thousands of  jobs and attract top-notch physicians to the state, developers told the Columbus Dispatch. The new hospitals and research buildings at Ohio State University and Nationwide Children’s Hospital, will cost $1.94 billion; create 8,400 permanent, full-time jobs; and at least 10,000 jobs for people who work in outside companies that either support the hospitals or benefit from increased spending.

 

“When we create 100 jobs in healthcare, we can expect another 126 other jobs in the [facilities’] area,” said Bill LaFayette, owner of the Columbus firm Regionomics. “The multiplier is even better on the research side, and every 100 jobs will create another 190 jobs.”

 

The new children’s hospital has already hired 1,500 employees, in preparation for its official June opening. Some of Children’s floors are already open. The new employees include 305 doctors and 256 nurses, with another 800 or 900 employees hired over the next three years to staff the expansion.

 

Meanwhile, Ohio State’s Cancer and Critical Care Tower is set to open in 2014, and plans to hire around 6,000 people to staff the 20-story building.

 

The hospitals already have been a boon for local construction workers. The new medical center now has about 240 construction workers on-site every day, and probably will add up to 600 more, said Bill Huber, senior project superintendent for Turner Land Lease, the site’s general contractor.

 

The new medical towers are also attracting top medical talent to Ohio.

 

“Our national reputation is growing, and this will enhance our reputation and our ability to recruit and hire the best and brightest,” said Tim Robinson, Children’s chief financial officer.