Children’s Hospital Association

Gun violence is a public health crisis and we must act now. Today, during Northwell Health's 5th Annual #PreventGunViolence forum, CHA announced our endorsement and investment into a new 5-year public awareness campaign for gun violence prevention led by the Ad Council and a coalition of hospitals and health systems scheduled to launch in January 2025. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/e5sGmftG

EOY Priority 1⃣ : Passing the Accelerating Kids Access to Care Act Every child deserves timely access to the care they need. Today, children on Medicaid needing care outside their home states often experience delays because some state Medicaid programs require out-of-state providers to be enrolled into their program even if the provider is already enrolled and in good standing with their home state Medicaid program and in Medicare. This is particularly true for America’s children with medically complex conditions, like cancer or other rare diseases, who must regularly access highly specialized providers found in children’s hospitals, which are often treating children from many different states at any given time. Sadly, these delays can be significant, as they wait far too long for critical treatments. The Accelerating Kids’ Access to Care Act (H.R. 4758/S.2372) has strong bipartisan support and passed the House of Representatives by voice vote in September 2024 with the strong leadership of Reps. Lori Trahan (D-Mass.), and Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa) and Sens. Chuck Grassley, (R-Iowa), and Michael Bennet (D-Colo.). Passing the bipartisan Accelerating Kids’ Access to Care Act would ensure children get the care they need—when they need it, regardless of where they live. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/dxm8vy5Y

💛 This Thanksgiving, we want to express our deepest gratitude to CHA staff, children’s hospital teams, pediatric health care workers, and the families who inspire our mission. We’re thankful for the innovative, specialized care provided by our children's hospitals and for everyone who makes children’s health care possible—helping children and their families experience all of life’s important moments, both big and small. Wishing you all a safe, happy, and healthy Thanksgiving! 🦃

CHA is proud of the record-breaking attendance at the 2024 Annual Leader Conference! This year, over 480 leaders from 120 children’s hospitals came together in San Antonio for two unforgettable days of learning, collaboration, and inspiration. From thought provoking keynotes and engaging educational sessions to insightful poster presentations, we explored critical topics like advocacy, behavioral health, workforce solutions, innovation, and cost position-all with the shared mission of advancing children’s health. A heartfelt thank you to our incredible speakers, attendees, and organizers who made this event a resounding success. Together, we’re proving that we’re truly #StrongerTogether. Save the date for next year: Nov. 3-5, 2025, in Chula Vista, California! 

One of CHA's key missions is supporting improvements within pediatric hospitals that save children’s lives. We hope a recent pilot study, co-led by CHA's Quality Improvement team and Child Health PSO®, will do just that. The study, which won an industry award for best abstract, is one example of how collaboration empowers progress toward eliminating preventable harm. “You have to start somewhere to iterate and learn. Even with all the discussions around diagnostic safety, there are not many applied interventions like this in the literature. We’re changing that,” said Elise Buckwalter, CHA’s clinical quality improvement consultant, who co-led the study with Director of Child Health PSO Emily Tooley, MSN, RN, CPPS, CPHQ.  Learn more about the award-winning Child Health PSO safety toolkit in the article below.

📢 Children’s hospitals are at the forefront of pediatric health care, but we can’t do it alone. Here are our top 5 priorities for Congress to take action on before the end of year to promote children’s health and enact policies to improve the health and wellbeing of America’s kids. Children need our help now. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/dxm8vy5Y

Tune in tomorrow, November 19 at 12:45pm EST for Fierce Healthcare/Fierce Pharma's DEI Forum for the panel discussion "Addressing the Crisis: Gun Violence as a Public Health Emergency and Its Impact on Healthcare Systems" with CHA's President and CEO, Matthew Cook, and industry leaders, as they discuss a layered approach to addressing this growing crisis. Register now: https://lnkd.in/ejYRKVeS

Military-connected children and teens often navigate unique challenges due to frequent relocations, family deployments, and limited access to consistent care. In his article, Matt Studer, MD, Col (ret), Medical Director, Regional Cardiology Program, Pediatric Cardiology at Seattle Children's highlights these distinct needs and discusses how health care providers can offer better support and resources to these pediatric patients. Read more about Dr. Studer’s insights and recommendations for improving care for military families: https://lnkd.in/ehH-mZqb #MilitaryKids #MilitaryFamilies

Earlier this week, members of CHA's Public Affairs team visited Children's Hospital of Philadelphia's Karabots Pediatric Care Center in West Philadelphia where their commitment to serving community needs was on full display! 🎶 The Karabots Center provides primary care services and co-locates behavioral health and community programs, bringing a variety of services to families under one roof. In 2023, they served 30,000 pediatric patients and families, with 1/3 living within walking distance. Thank you to the team for hosting CHA! Pictured: Stacy Wathen, Director, Community and Child Health, CHA; Falguni Patel, Director, Community Impact, CHOP, Gabby Ahearn, Policy Specialist, CHA; Katie Domina, Policy Coordinator, CHA; Gerolly Lorenzo, Program Manager, Community Impact, CHOP; and Steve Wilmot, AVP Care Network Operations, CHOP.

Health care professionals: DYK: The National Maternal Mental Health Hotline (1-833-TLC-MAMA), is a free confidential service offering 24/7 support from trained counselors via call and text in English, Spanish, and translation services in over 60 languages. The professional counselors include licensed health care professionals, certified educators, and specialists who will listen to callers’ needs and provide support directly, connect with local support groups and organizations, and/or refer callers to other health care professionals when more care is needed. Launched in 2022 by the Biden-Harris Administration to improve maternal health and reduce maternal mortality and health disparities. While mental health conditions are the leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths, more than 80% of pregnancy-related deaths are preventable according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This is a great resource to promote to expecting and new moms and their families. Learn more about Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSAgov), HHS hotline: https://lnkd.in/eKUtv7nZ