Children’s Health Network “Small Talk” — Premiere Issue
Fernando Ferrer, MD, FAAP, FACS
Chief Pediatric Officer
RWJBarnabas Health
How We Are Advancing Pediatric Care
As Chief Pediatric Officer for RWJBarnabas Health (RWJBH), I’m pleased to welcome you to “Small Talk,” our new children’s health e-newsletter for pediatric providers.
At RWJBH, we’re building on a strong foundation to address health care challenges and opportunities for a diverse New Jersey population that includes 2 million children. Being the largest health care system and largest single provider of pediatric care in the state gives us significant reach and the opportunity to deliver outstanding services to our children and families.
We’re focused on meeting the changing needs of our pediatric population and expanding our capabilities in order to care for children with the highest levels of complexity. Our vision includes focusing on critical issues such as:
1. Attracting Top Providers
Recent trends predict a worsening shortage of pediatric providers as demonstrated by diminshed filling of general pediatric and subspecialty training programs positions. We are evaluating our needs systematically, looking to fill talent gaps with clinicians who have highly specific skill sets. We will leverge our ongoing academic partnerships with Rutgers Health to enhance research and education and attract the best talent to our system. We are also honing our recruitment process to facilitate recruitment in a very competitive environment. Recently, we’ve been successful making multiple key recruitments that expand our talent network in a variety of areas, including surgery for children. Two key leadership examples:
- Vikas Dharnidharka, MD, a nationally recognized leader in nephrology, pediatrics and transplantation, joined RWJBH in October 2024 as Chair of Pediatrics and Physician-in-Chief of The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital (BMSCH) at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, part of the Children’s Health network. Dr. Dharnidharka is also Henry Rutgers Professor and Chair of the Department of Pediatrics at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School (RRWJMS).
- Steven Stylianos, MD, a nationally renowned pediatric surgeon, joined RWJBH in December 2024 as System Director for Pediatric Surgery and Surgeon-in-Chief at BMSCH. Dr. Stylianos is also professor of surgery in the Department of Surgery and Chief of the Division of Pediatric Surgery at RRWJMS.
2. Advancing Quality and Safety
National pediatric health care trends indicate a growing need for centers that can manage complex conditions. Naturally, this requires increased focus on quality and safety. We are addressing these needs through initiatives such as our neonatal care collaborative, where we bring the strength and capability of our system together to advance quality and safety and develop advanced programs in niche areas. An example of this is reflected in our unified key metrics scorecard whereby we carefully track our performance in key safety metrics across all our NICU’s. Across our system, we are expanding our participation in key pediatric safety programs, such as Children’s Hospitals’ Solutions for Patient Safety and the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program for Children. Finally, as a system we have created a pediatric specific quality council. This multidisciplinary group includes physicians, nurses, phamarcists and hospital leaders and is dedicated to advancing pediatric outcomes and patient experience as well as quality and safety across all of our platforms.
3. Post-Acute Care
Children leaving acute care often need additional specialized care, yet very few places have an extensive post-acute care platform for children like we do. Our capabilities, including Children’s Specialized Hospital, are a unique asset for an organization that’s expanding high-complexity care. Ongoing care involves not just applying technical skills but also understanding psychological complexities and the impact of a patient’s care environment. We have extensive services available to help patients and families navigate the health care experience and finish treatment feeing both physically and mentally well.
4. Filling Subspecialty Gaps
Complex care requires highly specialized expertise even within a specialty program, and we’re bringing that expertise to New Jersey families. For example, Dr. Stylianos is experienced in highly complex liver surgeries, including the Kasai procedure to alleviate biliary obstruction and jaundice in infants with biliary atresia. Our Pediatric Bone Marrow Transplantation and Cellular Therapy Program, one of the only ones in the state, ensures that our smallest patients and their families don’t need to leave New Jersey to receive the most advanced lifesaving cancer and blood disorder treatments. This first e-newsletter highlights several more examples, including our Pediatric Orthopedic Multispecialty Program and our nationally recognized children’s programs in celiac disease and cleft palate and craniofacial care. Finally, we share the story of Jayden, who was born with bladder exstrophy, a rare, complex condition that few centers can manage. His multispecialty care lead by our Urology program demonstrates our expanding specialty expertise.
About RWJBH Children’s Health Network
In partnership with Rutgers Health, the Children’s Health network of RWJBarnabas Health provides advanced research, teaching, social impact initiatives and outstanding care to improve the health and well-being of every child in every community. The nationally-ranked Children’s Health Network includes four comprehensive acute care Children’s Hospitals/Centers, a pediatric rehabilitation and long-term care hospital, nearly 900 primary and specialty care providers, and the full array of tertiary and quaternary physical and mental health services for children.
New Pediatric Orthopedic Multidisciplinary Program
In February 2025, Children’s Specialized Hospital (CSH), part of the Children’s Health network at RWJBarnabas Health (RWJBH), and the Pediatric Orthopedic program, whose physicians are part of the RWJBarnabas Health Medical Group, launched a state-of-the-art Pediatric Orthopedic Multidisciplinary Program, located in East Brunswick, New Jersey. Read more
Celiac Disease Program Earns National Recognition
Reputation and trust are critical in health care, especially in pediatrics, which makes it highly rewarding to have many of our specialty programs recognized by national organizations. One recent example is the RWJBarnabas Health Pediatric Celiac Disease Center, located at the Ann Vogel Family Care and Wellness Center in Eatontown, the only such center offering multispecialty care in new Jersey, has been honored by The Society for the Study of Celiac Disease (SSCD) as part of its Celiac Disease Unit Recognition Program. This recognition affirms that the center has demonstrated a significant commitment to delivering quality celiac disease diagnosis and treatment. The RWJBarnabas Health Pediatric Celiac Disease Center is one of only 10 centers in the U.S. with this designation. Read more
Cleft and Craniofacial Surgery Program
The Rutgers Health Cleft and Craniofacial Team at Bristol Meyers Squibb Children's Hospital offers comprehensive care for children, adults, and families with a wide range of facial differences. Our team is committed to providing expert care to children born with clefts and other craniofacial differences. We are a multi-specialty team who will meet you and your child early on and follow closely from infancy to adulthood. Our ultimate goal is to provide you and your child with comprehensive multidisciplinary care close to home. Our cleft team is approved by the American Cleft Palate Craniofacial Association, signifying our commitment to providing comprehensive, multidisciplinary care. Read more
RWJBarnabas Health Welcomes New Pediatric Clinicians
The Children’s Health network of RWJBarnabas Health, which offers expertise in both complex medical conditions and childhood wellness, is advancing pediatric care statewide by building a powerful network of general and specialist clinicians along with institutional alliances to support their work. We are pleased to welcome these excellent physicians to our clinical team. Read more
Improving Care for School-Age Children With Diabetes
It’s critical to ensure that all children with diabetes, one of the most common chronic diseases of childhood, receive optimal care while at school. School nurses and educators should have an excellent understanding of the role diet and exercise play in maintaining good glycemic control and be familiar with current technologies children might be using to manage diabetes. In addition, they must be familiar with the signs and symptoms of hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia, as well as initial treatments for each. Read more
Expert Surgical Care for an Infant With a Rare Bladder Defect
When Julia Rodriguez De Los Santos gave birth to her third child, Jayden in February 2024 at Clara Maass Medical Center, an RWJBarnabas Health hospital, he was immediately diagnosed with bladder exstrophy.
This rare condition occurs when a baby’s bladder and lower abdominal wall don’t close properly during fetal development. Jayden’s pubic bones were separated, and his bladder remained open outside of his abdomen. Because the bladder and urethra were not formed completely, his bladder couldn’t hold urine. Read more