Joan Han Named Nationwide Children’s Hospital’s Chief of Endocrinology

(COLUMBUS, Ohio) - Joan Han, MD, has been named chief of the Division of Endocrinology at Nationwide Children's Hospital, effective January 2026.

Dr. Han currently serves as a professor of pediatrics and Chief of the Division of Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and Mount Sinai Kravis Children's Hospital. Prior to joining Mount Sinai, she was an associate professor of pediatrics and director of the Pediatric Obesity Program at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center and Le Bonheur Children's Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. She is board certified in pediatric endocrinology, and obesity medicine.

"I am honored to be joining Nationwide's world-class pediatric endocrinology division," said Dr. Han. "I have known and admired the clinical expertise and research achievements of many of the faculty in this division over the years, so it is a tremendous privilege to now count them as colleagues as we work together to further advance innovations in delivering the best care possible for childhood endocrine disorders and diabetes."

In addition to her clinical responsibilities, Dr. Han has published broadly in the field of pediatric endocrinology. Her research studies have been funded by the NIH as well as multiple foundations and focus on the neuroendocrine regulation of energy balance and cognitive function while also looking at the genetic, environmental and behavioral determinants of metabolic health in the general population and in patients with rare genetic disorders associated with obesity and type 2 diabetes.

"Dr. Han's arrival to Nationwide Children's marks an exciting time for our endocrinology program," said Catherine Krawczeski, MD, physician-in-chief and chief of the Department of Pediatrics. "Dr. Han's research efforts, clinical expertise and leadership abilities will continue to grow the division and further advance the field of pediatric endocrinology."

She earned her undergraduate and medical degrees from Harvard University followed by residency in pediatrics at Boston Children's Hospital and Boston Medical Center. Dr. Han then completed a clinical research fellowship at Nemours Children's Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida, and a pediatric endocrinology fellowship at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland.

Dr. Han has also served as Pediatric Associate Editor for the International Journal Obesity from 2015-2021. She is a member of the American Pediatric Society, the Society for Pediatric Research, the American Pediatric Society, the Pediatric Endocrine Society, the Endocrine Society, and The Obesity Society, and is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics.