Published on April 07, 2026
Franklin County Board of Commissioners I Franklin County Office on Aging
More than 580 older Franklin County residents were assessed for support services through an embedded case manager at OSU East Hospital over the past 12 months, and the program has run without additional cost to the county. The Franklin County Board of Commissioners approved continuation of that partnership on April 7.
The program, operated through the Franklin County Office on Aging, places a full-time case manager inside the emergency department at OSU East from Monday through Friday. The case manager receives referrals from the emergency department, inpatient units, and Talbot Hall, and works with hospital staff to build discharge care plans that connect older adults to services before they leave the facility.
Laurice Collins, Chief Financial Officer of the Franklin County Office on Aging, told the board the approach was built out of a 2023 pilot program with the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center East Hospital. That pilot placed case managers inside the emergency department to test whether earlier coordination could connect older adults to county services more effectively. The results supported moving to a permanent model.
Services accessed through the program include nutrition programs, emergency response systems, and other support offered by the Franklin County Office on Aging. The case manager acts as a bridge between the clinical environment of the hospital and the community-based services the county provides, helping ensure that older adults are not discharged without a plan in place.
The board approved a new agreement with the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center Department of Emergency Medicine to continue the program through April 10, 2027, with the option to extend for two additional one-year terms. The resolution also aligns with Goal 9 of the Franklin County Rise Together Blueprint.