MARTINS FERRY — When East Ohio Regional Hospital workers learned last fall that their beloved medical facility was going to be shuttered, it hit them like a ton of bricks.

They were mad not just because their livelihoods were being threatened, but because their home away from home was going to disappear — perhaps forever.

The employees came together and held miniature going away parties of sorts. They ate cake inscribed with messages like “gone but not forgotten,” shared war stories and took group photos together in their respective departments almost like it was their final family reunions. Commemorative T-shirts with messages such as “RIP EORH” were made and distributed.

And on the night the final call was taken at the emergency room and the doors were closed, they stood together and hugged and wept, thinking it was the end.

But it turns out that it wasn’t.

When those same workers learned May 17 the news that EORH had been purchased by another company, they likely shed tears for a different reason — tears of joy that their hospital had been saved and will keep its name.

But there is much work that needs done before the doors can reopen. Repairs need to be made, equipment purchased and, eventually, doctors, nurses, housekeepers, cooks and more need hired to make it work.

For new Chief Operating Officer Bernie Albertini, every day is another step closer to EORH reopening, but there are many pieces to the puzzle that must be put in place first.

Albertini said he has hired more department heads, including those to lead the nursing department, act as controller and a computer network specialist. He is working to get a head housekeeper and maintenance boss in place as well.

As his executive team grows, more work to get departments up and running occurs. However, there is much equipment that needs to be purchased, such as machines for the radiology department, and repairs that need to be made to some infrastructure, such as the repair and replacement of some waterlines.

For example, there is no air conditioning in the building because the system needs a chiller.

“It’s a challenge, but this is what I do,” Albertini said, noting the people he is surrounding himself with also know what to do. “We want to open as quickly as we can, safely. We want there to be top-notch care on Day 1. We want to be ready to go the day we open.”

But it all takes time — assessing what is needed, finding vendors to either rent or purchase equipment from — and how long it will take remains to be seen. Officials have said previously it could reopen before the end of 2020.

Albertini said the facility’s new owner, Dr. John Johnson, a Dayton-based psychiatrist, has estimated it will take $38 million to reopen the hospital.

He noted he does not know if Johnson has that much in his bank account, but he said Johnson is committed to reopening the facility as a working acute care hospital.

“How we’re doing it is time consuming and laborious, but I know of no other way to do it. We’re just working through it,” Albertini said.

“It truly depends on how fast we can get things delivered. … And the other part is that we have to have the Joint Commission come in and certify us and the board of health needs to approve permits,” he added.

Employees to run the hospital and take care of patients also will have to be hired. Albertini said when he knows the planned opening date, he will announce some sort of hiring event. But if the number of inquiries he has personally received is any indication, it appears EORH will have no problem finding workers.

“I can’t believe how many people have contacted me wanting to come back,” Albertini said. “It speaks volumes that people want to come home.”

Albertini said he does not know at the moment how many will be employed. It depends, he said, on how many doctors and nurses are needed. However, in later phases there will be new departments, possibly related to mental health.

And for example, they are considering doing their own laundry at the hospital instead of using an outside service. Previously the laundry was done by a Pittsburgh company. Having its own laundry department would require the hiring of additional workers.

He estimated the hospital will eventually employ 300 to 400 people. He noted at one point in the past it employed about 600 people.

But another factor to hiring people is just how many patients will come through the door.

“We don’t know how busy we will be,” he said.

Albertini said for him personally, it does not matter that the hospital will be a for-profit business. He has worked at EORH in the past when it was a nonprofit and later when it was a for-profit enterprise under its previous owner, Alecto Healthcare Services.

“Operationally it’s all about taking care of patients,” he said.

The first phase of the opening will be the emergency room, which means the hospital will also need beds to admit patients. The second phase likely will be the long-term care unit.

“And from there we will have to figure out which way we want to go,” Albertini said.

He noted an important piece of the puzzle was getting Martins Ferry City Council on board with giving back 75 percent of the money generated by the 1 percent income tax levied against future employees. Though Albertini does not have an estimate as to how much money this would generate for EORH, he said it is an important part of Johnson’s equation in sustaining the facility.

When Martins Ferry City Council approved its $10.5 million budget for 2020 in March, Auditor Rita Randall said the budget took into account the city receiving $125,000 less in income taxes from EORH, which has been closed since September.

The council is expected to soon consider approval of an ordinance related to the income tax for EORH.

On a side note, Albertini said he wants to stress to people that Johnson has no affiliation with Alecto, and that he did not purchase the shuttered Ohio Valley Medical Center in Wheeling. Its fate remains to be seen.