Ohio University alumna named O’Bleness Hospital president

OhioHealth has announced that Ohio University alumna LeeAnn Helber, BBA ‘90, will serve as the new president of OhioHealth O’Bleness Hospital.

“I would like to congratulate LeeAnn on being named president of OhioHealth O’Bleness Hospital. I am very proud of her as an alumna and I know that she will do an outstanding job of leading OhioHealth O’Bleness Hospital,” OHIO President Hugh Sherman said. “Ohio University and OhioHealth have had a long-standing partnership, and I look forward to future collaboration with LeeAnn as we work together to better serve our community. I enjoyed working with Mark Seckinger and wish him all of the best in his retirement.”

Helber recently replaced outgoing O’Bleness president Mark Seckinger, who announced his retirement in February. 

“I’m looking forward to building on the strong partnerships already in place between OHIO and OhioHealth and creating new connections to improve the health of our communities,” Helber said.

Helber was an internal candidate for the role and has served as OhioHealth’s senior director of regional system development since 2013, where she was responsible for all independent hospital relationships across the system’s 47-county service area. 

“OhioHealth O’Bleness Hospital plays a vital role in southeast Ohio, not only with respect to community wellbeing but also as a valued partner in the training of aspiring healthcare professionals. LeeAnn is uniquely qualified to advance both aims, given her extensive experience with rural hospitals and her regional roots,” said Ken Johnson, D.O., Ohio University’s chief medical affairs officer and executive dean of the Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine. “I look forward to partnering with LeeAnn to support medical training and patient care across the region.” 

Before working for OhioHealth, Helber worked at the Hocking Valley Community Hospital in Logan for 18 years, serving in the roles as vice president of finance and later president and chief executive officer. 

Helber has had strong ties to the local community ever since she attended OHIO. 

“I fell in love with southeast Ohio during my time at Ohio University,” Helber said. “I’m so proud to be able to return and make a difference in the community.” 

OHIO values collaboration and partnership with OhioHealth. OHIO’s Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine has partnered with OhioHealth for the past four decades to train generations of physicians. Just this past January, OhioHealth and OHIO entered a memorandum of understanding to expand medical and health research collaborations. At the beginning of the pandemic, a partnership was also formed for OhioHealth to provide expanded services for students, faculty and staff across OHIO campuses.