Boston Children\'s Hospital Has Become an Important

¶ … Boston Children's Hospital has become an important location for assisting children to deal with a host of issues ranging from cancer treatment options to transplants. According to U.S. News and World Report (2013), Boston Children's Hospital is ranked as the number one facility for helping children to address a host of health issues including cardiology and neurology. The hospital is having a positive impact on the lives of children by offering them state-of-the-art treatment options in a caring environment. However, the institution faces a variety of challenges. This case study examines those challenges and how Boston Children's Hospital can meet those challenges.

Background of Boston Children's Hospital

Boston Children's Hospital first opened its doors in 1869, as a 20-bed facility in the South End. By 1891, Boston Children's had already proven itself to be a leader in health care delivery by creating the first laboratory for producing bacteria-free milk in the United States (Boston Children's Hospital, 2013). Throughout the early twentieth century, doctors and medical researchers at Boston Children's Hospital performed a number of progressive procedures and experiments that advanced the study of pediatrics. The hospital's first pediatric heart transplant was delivered in 1986, and in 2000, Boston Children's Hospital doctors performed the institute's 100th heart transplant. The hospital remains a leader in pediatric care in areas ranging from diabetes to leukemia. Its mission is simple, and phrased with four key points: to provide the highest quality health care; to be the leading source of research and discovery; to educate the next generation of leaders in child health; and to enhance the health and well-being of the children and families in our community (Boston Children's Hospital, 2013). Core values of the organization include excellence, sensitivity, leadership, and community (Boston Children's Hospital, 2013).

Boston Children's Hospital has recently been recognized at the top of most different areas of specialization including cancer, cardiology/heart surgery, diabetes/endochrinology, and gastroenterology (Boston Children's Hospital, 2013; U.S.. News and World Report, 2013). This level of excellence is being achieved in spite of the rapid changes taking place in health care research and public policy. In fact, Boston Children's Hospital has responded well enough to these changes to become a role model for other health care organizations.

To learn from Boston Children's Hospital, it is necessary to focus on the way the institution is evolving to meet health management and real life challenges. It is hypothesized that leadership and effective change management have become the core competencies of Boston Children's Hospital's management team. An examination of Boston Children's Hospital's approach to challenge and change will demonstrate how the institution can and will succeed over the long-term. This analysis will in turn help Boston Children's Hospital become a role model for other health care organizations.

Sandi Fenwick, President and COO