According to Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, the word hope, whether used as a verb or a noun, carries as part of the definition, “desire accompanied by anticipation or expectation.” In many ways, the history of the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt reflects this definition. Nearly a century ago, the community of Nashville anticipated the need for a medical home, initially for crippled children, but then for children with varying health care needs. Over following years, our community grew to expect specialized medical services for children. For the past five decades, we have developed programs and partnerships with the overall mission of providing children and their families with a sense of hope—whether treating the common cold or performing the most complex of surgeries.
Our multidisciplinary programs of inpatient and outpatient care, our scientific collaborations, and our approach to teaching the next generation of child health providers have been built upon the common vision of improving the health and well-being of children, not only in Middle Tennessee but regionally in the Southeast, nationally and even internationally. We are able to achieve this through collaboration and innovation across our hospital and campus divisions as well as through our partnerships within our greater community.
As we move through the spring and summer months, we anticipate more relaxed schedules and special times with family and friends. During this time of the year, at the Children’s Hospital, we too look forward to various celebrations and milestones. We celebrate the opening of our hospital expansion with many needed beds, some of which will support children with heart and lung disease like one of our featured patients, Sierra. We celebrate the 90th anniversary of the Junior League of Nashville, a longtime community relationship integral to the history of the Children’s Hospital as well as the success of some of our novel programs. And we celebrate the commitment to innovative care models and research programs that bring together scientists and clinicians to improve the outcomes of infants, children and adolescents.
The stories you will read reflect the hope that families and staff at Children’s Hospital experience every day. We want to serve as a place of unwavering hope for all the families who walk through our doors. These stories highlight the amazing work done by our best doctors and scientists, nurses and staff who are committed to excellence in care and in research.
We hope you will enjoy them and continue to accompany us on our journey.
Sincerely,
Luke Gregory
Chief executive officer
Meg Rush, M.D.Acting chair,
Department of Pediatrics and chief of staff
John W. Brock III, M.D.
Surgeon-in-chief, director of the Division of Pediatric Urology and Monroe Carell Jr. Chair