AdventHealth Ottawa will soon resume labor and delivery services in Franklin County, with the Family Birth Place reopening to expectant families on September 22. The medical team will include Bridget Abney, MD, OB/GYN; Raven Weiss, MD, Family Medicine/Obstetrics; and Haley Lowell, MD, Family Medicine/Obstetrics. Dr. Lowell is set to start in early September. In 2026, Chase Brown, MD, Family Medicine/Obstetrics, will join the staff.
“Across our AdventHealth Ottawa extended service area there are over 500 deliveries each year. Many of these families live outside of communities that provide these services and must travel a great distance to deliver their babies. We are proud to be re-opening our labor and delivery program and Family Birth Place to care for these families,” said Brendan Johnson, president and chief officer of AdventHealth Ottawa. “We worked diligently to resume these critical services through deliberate and thoughtful recruiting efforts, even with the challenging hiring environment facing rural communities. We are overjoyed to be delivering on our promise to support patient and family needs in this region and can’t wait for our community to get to know our providers and experience their care.”
Dr. Abney will offer outpatient OB/GYN care at AdventHealth Ottawa Health Park in Ottawa. Drs. Weiss and Lowell will provide both family medicine with obstetric services at the same location as well as at AdventHealth Wellsville Health Park in Wellsville. They also offer general family medicine at both clinics.
“It is so important for us to be bringing programs like this back to our communities where there is a defined need. This is especially important as we look to care for Franklin County and our neighboring rural communities who may not have access to this level of maternal care,” said Johnson. “Come September 22nd, we will celebrate our complete labor and delivery program by providing families with comprehensive care including general family medicine and specialized care during pregnancy, childbirth, postpartum and newborn care.”
Hiring for clinical positions began in June 2025 ahead of the unit’s reopening; eleven full-time employees have been hired so far.
Recent developments at AdventHealth Ottawa include Drs. Weiss and Lowell joining the team in 2025; Dr. Abney’s arrival in December 2024 started plans for resuming labor and delivery services; an expanded clinic opened at AdventHealth Wellsville Health Park; Johnson was named president in January 2025; a $5.2 million expansion brought new specialty programs including behavioral health; the Emergency Department earned geriatric accreditation from the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP); and more than one thousand local students received shoes through a partnership with Shoes That Fit.
AdventHealth Orlando—founded in 1908—is located in Orlando, Florida https://www.adventhealth.com/hospital/adventhealth-orlando/adventhealth-orlando-foundation/about-adventhealth-orlando . Its current president is Terry Shaw. The hospital has a pediatric ward and functions as a training facility.
