Children's Hospitals Today - Spring 2022 - 3

CHA VOICES / CHECKING IN
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Chair
Taking action
We are committed to supporting progress in DEI priorities.
Paul A. King
Stanford Children's Health
Vice Chair/Chair-Elect
Jeff Sperring, M.D.
Seattle Children's
Secretary
Katy A. Welkie, RN
Intermountain Primary
Children's Hospital
Treasurer
Mike Farrell
Advocate Children's Hospital
Board Members
Matthew Cook
UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals
Marcy Doderer (Past Chair)
Arkansas Children's
Deborah Feldman
Dayton Children's Hospital
Jena Hausmann
Children's Hospital Colorado
Paul Kempinski
Children's Mercy Kansas City
R. Lawrence Moss, M.D.
Nemours Children's Health
Timothy Robinson
Nationwide Children's Hospital
Mark Wietecha
Childrenʼs Hospital Association
T
here are more than 75 million children
in the United States-nearly one quarter
of our population. Today's kids are, at
their core, kids-with hopes, fears, aspirations
and questions. Today's kids are also
more diverse than ever in race, ethnicity,
gender, religion and socioeconomic status.
As children's hospitals, we value every one
of them for who they are and are committed
to their development, care and well-being.
In January, Paul King, chair of CHA's
Board of Trustees, described the two sides
of leadership's priority coin requiring our
focus in 2022-our patients and people. To
truly focus on these priorities, we must look
at our organizations through the lenses of
diversity, equity and inclusion.
Understanding health disparities and
how our systems and processes contribute
to them is the first step in achieving health
care equity among the patients we serve. We
must also collaborate with other sectors to
realize greater health equity for all children
in our communities.
Building a diverse and inclusive workLEADERSHIP
CEO
Mark
Wietecha
President
Amy Wimpey Knight
Chief Public Affairs Officer
Leah Evangelista
Vice President
Member Relations, Marketing
and Communications
Michelle Lunbeck
force reflective of our communities and patients
is also a shared priority. This changes
the ways children's hospitals recruit, train,
identify and promote underrepresented
groups within our organizations and how
we create a greater sense of belonging.
We have engaged, talked and listened over
the past two years. Actions, not words, will
be important in 2022. At CHA, we are committed
to supporting progress across our
community of children's hospitals. DEI priorities
will be reflected in efforts related to:
Federal
advocacy.
Include equity
in awareness and policy initiatives in
children's mental health; ensure the viability
of children's hospitals and their
missions; and increase funding for a diverse
pediatric workforce.
Collaborative learning. Convene the
children's hospital community via affinity
groups and conferences featuring
thought leadership from inside and outside
the industry.
Children's health care and health outcomes.
Identify and mitigate variations in
care; pursue demonstration projects in multisector
collaboration; and refocus our core
data and quality work to ensure disparities
are identifiable, measurable and addressed.
The CHA organization. Embed DEI in our
values and behaviors and leverage internal
and external expertise to assess and recommend
changes.
To support these efforts and others, we
will seek guidance from a DEI Advisory
Group composed of leaders from across our
member hospitals. We move forward recognizing
it is a journey, and we are committed
to the road ahead.
AMY WIMPEY KNIGHT
President, Children's Hospital Association
CHILDREN'S HOSPITALS TODAY Spring 2022
3
Children's Hospitals Today - Spring 2022

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