LEWISBURG, W.Va. — Healthcare officials in Greenbrier County are thrilled with the return of labor and delivery services to the Greenbrier Valley Medical Center.
Earlier this month, Gov. Patrick Morrisey announced a partnership between the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine (WVSOM) and Vandalia Health to bring those services back to the facility in Lewisburg after a one-year hiatus. Additionally, a nearly $4 million grant from the Rural Health Transformation Program will help toward building the second freestanding birthing center in West Virginia.
An ‘Academic Integration Agreement’ through the joint venture will restart obstetric services at the Greenbrier Valley Medical Center. The osteopathic medicine school will become Vandalia Health’s main academic affiliate, not exclusively, a process that will unfold in phases starting next July. There will be expanded Graduate Medical Education (GME) and Residency Programs through this agreement.
Dara Aliff, DO, who specializes in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Vandalia Health, told MetroNews she’s very excited about the announcement. She said it will be great to have a community hospital paired with the support of faculty and research. Especially in rural areas, she noted, birthing centers are becoming more and more difficult to access.
“About 12% of rural OB, labor and delivery units have closed nationally since 2020,” Aliff said. “In West Virginia, that’s 36% of ours. We have gone from 35 labor and delivery units in 2006 and we’re down to 16 as of May 2026.”
She said that half of West Virginia’s counties have fallen under “obstetric desert” classifications. Care for C-sections, epidurals, and higher-risk pregnancies will occur at the hospital. The community-based birthing center will also feature more prenatal and postpartum care and women’s health options.
West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine President Dr. Jim Nemitz said people worked hard to bring back the labor and delivery services in the 12 months after they stopped.
“It’s just a great example of a challenge and people coming together to create a solution,” Nemitz said. “We certainly appreciate the efforts by the governor and our legislators to make this happen, especially our federal legislators who are providing the dollars for the Rural Transformation funds.”
Aliff said that women are traveling great distances for care in the state. She said that time really mounts up.
“In counties that are listed as an obstetrical desert, the average travel time to care to even regular appointments, is about 45 minutes up to 76 minutes when the perinatal partnership did their study.”
There are barriers for women taking that time to seek care, Aliff noted. She added that’s where trouble may ensue.
“That time comes from somewhere,” Aliff said. “That’s a shift at work, childcare, care for aging parents, volunteering in churches in our schools. I mean, women are doing lots of things, and so to take that much time out just to travel for care, a lot of women either come later or they don’t come at all.”
Aliff expressed hope that the Greenbrier Valley success can serve as a replicable model in rural areas across the state.
From the WVSOM’s perspective, Nemitz said the partnership will work in several ways. He said it will help fill a void for services in the region, and also aid students at the school get meaningful opportunities.
“What we want is to be able to offer our students opportunities to become the physician that they want to be,” Nemitz said. “That’s what this new era and this new relationship is all about.”
He said the school is committed to propelling students into whatever career they desire. When they come to Lewisburg, he said, they fall in love with the community and the rural lifestyle.
“WVSOM produces all specialties,” Nemitz said. “At the same time, I also tell people that if you’re interested in rural medicine, this is one of the best places in the country to come to.”