A Message from Alex R. Fischer
Dear Friends,
“The end of the beginning.” That’s how I described where Nationwide Children’s Hospital is on its journey when, this past winter, we named Tim Robinson as the new chief executive officer.
Tim exemplifies everything we were seeking in a successor for our outstanding retiring CEO, Dr. Steve Allen. He has galvanized my belief in the tremendous strength of this organization and our ability to lead the way as a destination academic medical center, research and technology commercialization engine, and a steadfast community partner.
In his role as the hospital’s chief financial officer for nearly 25 years, Tim has been at the center of every major decision during our time of significant growth, and his thoughtful, inclusive approach earned him the admiration of people throughout the enterprise along the way. His innovative thinking helped make possible one-of-a-kind efforts like Partners For KidsSM, our program for caring for Ohio’s neediest children, and Healthy Neighborhoods Healthy Families, which has won national acclaim for reimagining population health efforts and what it means to be a children’s hospital. We are fortunate to have him guiding our 14,000 employees as we take the hospital to the next level.
Among the investments of the past decade whose returns began to exceed everyone’s expectations this year are those in research. There are too many to list, but I will point to one that is the first of its kind in the world: Zolgensma. With the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of this revolutionary, single-infusion gene therapy for spinal muscular atrophy, the world changed for children and families facing a disease once considered a death sentence.
Just as visionary is our work in behavioral health. The opening of the Big Lots Behavioral Health Pavilion in March 2020 will bring desperately needed new resources to young people and families living with mental illness. In the process, we will break the stigmas that hold back progress in this area and demonstrate how an integrated, community-wide system can change lives.
These successes are only possible thanks to the talented, passionate men and women who come to work at Nationwide Children’s every day and the generous donors who believe that children everywhere deserve transformational health care and research. This year we honored two of our most distinguished philanthropic leaders by dedicating the Abigail Wexner Research Institute and the Steve and Cindy Rasmussen Institute for Genomic Medicine at Nationwide Children’s. These dedications honor transformational individuals, and I am humbled by your dedication and grateful for the gift of being inspired by you.
What lies ahead in 2020 will leave people saying, “Just when I thought I’d seen them do everything…” We want the world talking about us because it helps attract the talent and resources that makes possible world-class care and discoveries. The words we all most want to hear from our work, however, are simply, “I feel better. Can I go out and play?”
Like the butterflies in our logo and on our buildings, every child is meant to fly. Helping them do it is our mission. Together we make it possible.
ALEX R. FISCHER
Chair
Nationwide Children’s Hospital Inc./Nationwide Children’s Hospital
Board of Directors
