Indianapolis, 1-7-04 – St.Vincent Children’s Hospital has joined The National Association of Children's Hospitals and Related Institutions, becoming one of 168 institutions in the nonprofit association. Member hospitals benefit from a collective voice for health systems devoted to the well being of America's 70 million children and their families, no matter how sick or poor.
“Participation in NACHRI offers us a vast communications network with people who understand children: their needs, their treatment, and the financing of their care,” said Harry Laws, MD, administrator at St.Vincent Children’s Hospital. “We look forward to bringing our leadership and special insights to the association and joining in the initiative for stronger advocacy on behalf of all children.”
St.Vincent Children’s Hospital is a 55-bed acute care pediatric hospital dedicated to the care of ill children from infancy to age 17. St.Vincent provides the highest level of critical care through the 17-bed Hilbert Pediatric Emergency Department and 15-bed Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. The hospital was admitted as a supporter to NACHRI because its aims and activities fulfill a commitment to the advocacy of children and children's health.
NACHRI is a not-for-profit membership association of children's hospitals, large pediatric units of medical centers and related organizations, including those that specialize in rehabilitative and long-term care of children with serious chronic or congenital illnesses.
“We welcome St.Vincent Children’s Hospital to the family of care givers devoted to improving the health of children, and we look forward to St.Vincent’s active involvement,” said NACHRI President and CEO Lawrence A. McAndrews. “Because of their focus on children, institutions such as St.Vincent Children’s Hospital are able to identify emerging trends and problems associated with the health of children.”
“St.Vincent is honored to have our premier pediatric facility, St.Vincent Children’s Hospital, as a member of this organization,” said Patricia Maryland, Dr.PH, president of St.Vincent Indianapolis Hospital.
Children's hospitals represent only one percent of all hospitals nationwide, but in 1998, they gave more than 3.7 million days of inpatient care to more than 600,000 children at an annual cost approaching $8.7 billion. More than 9 million times a year, a child benefits various outpatient services provided by children's hospitals.
Founded in 1968, NACHRI maintains extensive data on children's health in general and descriptive data on 168 member hospitals and the conditions they treat. Some of the issues NACHRI addresses include seriously ill children, immunization status, prenatal care, low birth weight infants, children with AIDS, technology-dependent children, Medicaid and uninsured children. Through its headquarters, and especially through its members, NACHRI advocates broadly for child health and well-being -- focusing on prevention, financing and the highest quality of care.
For more information on NACHRI organizations and services, visit www.childrenshospitals.net.
St.Vincent Children’s Hospital is a member of St.Vincent Health, one of the largest healthcare systems in Indiana. St.Vincent Health is dedicated to spiritually centered holistic care which sustains and improves the health of individuals and communities. St.Vincent Children’s Hospital, a tertiary referral pediatric hospital, is one of 16 facilities in the Indianapolis-based St.Vincent Health network. A member of Ascension Health, the largest Catholic healthcare system in the country, the ageless mission of St.Vincent Health is to minister to the bodies, minds and spirits of those in need, regardless of religion. For more information about St.Vincent Children’s Hospital, visit www.stvincent.org
