News Release

FORT WAYNE — Cincinnati Children’s and Parkview Health have signed a letter of intent to expand access to world-class pediatric healthcare in Fort Wayne and the surrounding region. The joint initiative would bring together the operations of Parkview’s current pediatric hospital services, pediatric primary care and pediatric specialty services with Cincinnati Children’s, all to deliver world-class care closer to home for families.

The letter of intent also includes a shared aspiration to build a dedicated pediatric hospital on the Parkview Regional Medical Center campus. The feasibility of this project will also require philanthropic support to bring this transformational care to our community.

This expanded partnership would be the latest collaboration between the two health systems, which have worked together successfully for more than a decade to meet their shared vision of improving health and outcomes for kids and their families in the Fort Wayne region.

“Both Cincinnati Children’s and Parkview Health are dedicated to serving our communities by ensuring that our patients can access quality care close to home,” said Raymond Dusman, M.D., president, Physician and Clinical Enterprise, Parkview Health. “Our two health systems share excitement of the impact that a new pediatric hospital could have for families located not just in Fort Wayne but also throughout northern Indiana and northwest Ohio. As we define a new vision for pediatric specialty care in the region, we’ll continue to leverage our existing partnership to enhance quality, helping patients today.”

“Cincinnati Children’s has a long history of collaborating with other healthcare organizations to share best practices and provide exceptional care for patients,” said Steve Davis, MD, MMM, Cincinnati Children’s president and CEO. “Ensuring the highest quality pediatric services are available at a conveniently accessible pediatric hospital would be transformative for patients and families living in the region.”

As an initial step to increasing access, the two systems have expanded their tele-health collaboration. Patients and families can now consult Cincinnati Children’s experts in pediatric neurosurgery, rheumatology, preventive cardiology and drug-resistant epilepsy.

The health systems, which are about 180 miles apart, initially began working together in 2011 to enhance trauma services in the Fort Wayne region.

Parkview Health is the region’s leading provider of pediatric care, operating a 27-bed pediatric inpatient unit, including seven pediatric intensive care unit beds and employing more than 20 pediatric specialists, who provide care locally in Fort Wayne in partnership with Cincinnati Children’s pediatric sub-specialists in Cincinnati.

Parkview Health is comprised of 13 hospitals, including Parkview Women’s & Children’s Hospital, plus a network of primary care and specialty physicians.

Ranked  #1 among the nation’s Best Children’s Hospitals by U.S. News & World Report, Cincinnati Children’s has more than 760 registered beds across its three hospital campuses and each year sees pediatric patients from all 50 states and dozens of countries.