“We are investing in this community so that Cincinnati Children’s Wilmington Primary Care can provide pediatric services closer to home for many families who now drive long distances,” said Dr. Evaline Alessandrini, chief operating officer at Cincinnati Children’s.
This continues Cincinnati Children’s expansion upwards out of the Cincinnati region. In August, Cincinnati Children’s expanded care coordination services to 10,000 children on Medicaid, serving a total of more than 127,000 children in southwest Ohio, including in Butler and Warren counties.
Cincinnati Children’s HealthVine, a pediatric accountable care organization, entered into an agreement with Humana Healthy Horizons in Ohio to provide its care coordination services to Humana Medicaid beneficiaries.
About 4,000 kids who are enrolled in HealthVine live in Clinton County or surrounding areas, Alessandrini said. Wilmington is 50 miles from Cincinnati Children’s Burnet Campus in Hamilton County and 35 miles from the health system’s Liberty Campus in Butler County.
In May, Cincinnati Children’s unveiled its renovated location in Centerville, a single-story building at 6555 Clyo Road just over 12,600 square feet, which was previously home to a private medical practice. The renovation allowed Cincinnati Children’s to expand the services it offers out of the Centerville location, such as audiology, dermatology, pulmonary medicine and radiology.
Dr. Jeffrey Manser, a pediatrician with 32 years of experience working in Wilmington, will lead the Cincinnati Children’s office at 1150 W. Locust St., Suite 500. The location will begin accepting appointments in December.
“We are delighted that someone as highly regarded as Dr. Manser will lead this effort to increase access to care for families in Clinton County and nearby Highland County and Fayette County,” Alessandrini said.
Dr. Tina Gabbard, a family physician with over 30 years of experience in Wilmington, will also work at the office. She and Manser have been married for 37 years. Cincinnati Children’s plans to add another pediatrician to the location, along with a registered nurse, medical assistants and support staff, the health system said.
The Wilmington community encouraged Manser to return to practicing medicine after he suffered a difficult bout of illness during the COVID-19 pandemic, Cincinnati Children’s said.
Manser became ill with COVID at the start of the pandemic and was hospitalized. Patient families held a prayer vigil to support him. A #ManserStrong social media campaign depicted candles, outdoor luminaria and porch lights turned on in his honor.
Manser recovered and decided to return to practicing medicine both because of his gratitude to those families who showed support to him and because of the area’s shortage of pediatricians.
“The community of Wilmington has always been generous to me, and now I have the chance to give back in a meaningful way,” Manser said. “As some of my colleagues moved on to new opportunities or retired, it has become challenging to maintain pediatric coverage for the Wilmington community.”
“Cincinnati Children’s and I recognized the urgent need to restore pediatric care for Wilmington,” Manser said. “I realized that the best way to ensure long-lasting care was to partner with a renowned organization like Cincinnati Children’s, which is recognized nationally for its high standards.”
Cincinnati Children’s offers pediatric primary care in Anderson Township, Avondale, Batesville, Cold Spring, Fairfield, Florence, Greensburg, Kenwood, Liberty Township, Mason, North Fairmount, Southgate and Springdale as well as at three school-based health centers in Cincinnati.
In addition, Cincinnati Children’s has begun construction on a medical building that will include pediatric primary care in the Boone County city of Union, Ky., and a primary care is set to open in Loveland, Ohio.
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