Kids First: Strengthening the workforce behind pediatric care - Children's National

A stable, sustainable pediatric workforce is essential to making sure every child can get high-quality care when and where they need it. But children's healthcare is different from adult care, and the people, programs and policies that support it must be designed with children and families in mind.

In this episode of The Lead in Peds, guest host Michelle Riley-Brown, MHA, FACHE, president and CEO of Children's National, speaks with Matthew Cook, president and CEO of the Children's Hospital Association, and Torey Mack, MD, chief medical officer and neonatologist at the Children's Hospital Association.

Together, they discuss why the pediatric workforce faces unique challenges, from longer training paths and lower reimbursement to subspecialty shortages that can force families to travel long distances or wait weeks for care. They also explain why Medicaid and Children's Hospitals Graduate Medical Education, or CHGME, are foundational to pediatric access, workforce stability and the future of specialized care for kids.

The episode makes the case that putting kids first means investing in the people, programs and policies that make specialized pediatric care possible for children and families across the country.