MDNews - Minnesota

Q &A Barbara Joers PRESidENT ANd CEO Of gillETTE CHildREN'S SPECiAlTy HEAlTHCARE Q How is gillette Children's Specialty Healthcare different from other children's hospitals? A: What makes us unique is simple: our focus. Gillette Children's Specialty Healthcare is a known leader in the diagnosis and treatment of children who have disabilities and complex medical conditions, both short-term and long-term. We offer specialized medical and surgical interventions and advanced therapeutic techniques. We provide those services to a defined population, which differentiates us from a general full-service organization. Our centers of excellence span seven clinical areas: cerebral palsy, craniofacial services, gait and motion analysis, neurosciences, orthopedics, rehabilitation, and pediatric subspecialty care. We treat conditions that are considered outliers in other healthcare organizations — conditions such as cleft lip and palate, spine deformity, limb length discrepancies, epilepsy, brain and spinal cord injuries, and spina bifida. Gillette is methodical in deciding what services we undertake, so we do not lose focus by over-diversifying. Others across the region do a good job of handling primary care and managing common conditions, ABouT BARBARA JoERS BarBara JoerS became Gillette's Chief Executive Officer in October 2013. She has worked in health care for nearly 20 years and has held leadership positions in pediatric hospitals for more than a decade. Most recently, she served as Vice President at Children's Hospital of Wisconsin. Joers also previously held leadership roles at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and was Chief Operating Officer at Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt. She received her bachelor's degree in hospital administration from Marymount University in Arlington, Va., and her master's degree in health services management and policy from The George Washington University in Washington, D.C. 20 | Twin Cities MD News ■ MdNewS.CoM

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