The Ohio Pediatric Psychiatry Access Line (OPPAL)  launches in July 2025, providing pediatric primary care providers with a telephone helpline for same-day consultations with a  child psychiatrist. This initiative addresses the increasing mental health challenges faced by Ohio’s youth. OPPAL will enhance behavioral health support for pediatric providers through timely psychiatric consultations and improved access to resources and training. An introductory webinar on OPPAL will be held on June 24. This program is a collaborative effort by the Ohio Departments of Health and Medicaid, along with various medical organizations, aiming to refine and improve mental health services for youth in the state.

Physician connection is a service offered to community physicians that connects them by phone to a specialist at Nationwide Children’s Hospital to consult about a patient.

The service is provided through the communications center at Nationwide Children’s Hospital and is available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The communications center staff will make every effort to connect community physicians as quickly as possible, depending on availability of specialists and urgency of need for consultation.
To access this service, call 877-355-0221.