A message from our CEO & Board Chair: We Stand Together

A message from Children's Hospital CEO, John R. Nickens IV and Board Chair, Stephen W. Hales, MD 

Children’s Hospital Community,

Children’s Hospital New Orleans has a long tradition of serving all children and families from across Louisiana and the Gulf South, providing the highest level of pediatric care available. Our vision to build a healthier, happier future for all children does not include a future filled with racism or violence.

The recent tragic and unjust deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd have brought us to a long-delayed moment of change across our nation – a turning point that we as leaders in this community, and as an organization focused on children’s health and wellbeing, must acknowledge and take ownership of. Ghandi taught that in order to change the world we must first change ourselves -- as individuals and as members of this community, that time is now.

We must be courageous and stand with all people of color, especially the African American community, in confronting the racism that is prevalent across our nation. We must focus on and commit to building a future based on equality, justice and respect for all humankind. In practice, this means having the tough conversations, recognizing and adjusting our own inherent biases, talking to our children about what is right, celebrating inclusiveness, and standing up together to confront injustice. It is our collective responsibility to create a world absent of bigotry and racism.

As we move forward, we think about our Children’s Hospital Values – Caring, Honor, Nice, Ownership, Leadership and Advocacy – and how we can live them both at work and in our communities to create a tomorrow that is rooted in respect, diversity and equality. We can and must do better.