Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center has selected its current Chief Operating Officer Dr. Steve Davis to succeed longtime President and CEO Michael Fisher on Nov. 22.
Fisher, 62, announced plans to retire in April after 12 years as head of the large pediatric provider. Fisher said at the time he would stay on until the health system chose a permanent replacement.
Davis, 59, served previously as interim CEO for Cincinnati Children's for six months in 2018. He joined the organization in 2015 after serving as chief operating officer of the Cleveland Clinic's Hillcrest Hospital from 2012 to 2015. From 1996 to 2015, Davis worked as a pediatric critical care physician at Cleveland Clinic Children's Hospital.
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Davis held a variety of leadership positions during his tenure at Cleveland Clinic, including program director of the Pediatric Critical Care Fellowship Programs, chair of pediatric critical care medicine and executive director of crucial care across the health system.
"I came to Cincinnati Children's because I want to change the world of healthcare—for children in Cincinnati and beyond," said Davis in a news release. "I envision a world where all children can reach their full potential—where racial and economic disparities have been eliminated, and where the zip code you were born in doesn't shorten your life expectancy or quality of life."
Cincinnati Children's board formalized the decision in a vote Monday, Chair Mark Jahnke said in a news release. Davis's experience as a clinician and an executive made him the "clear choice," Jahnke said. "Steve brings exceptional problem-solving skills and a collaborative nature to the position of chief executive," Janhke said.
Davis will take over at one of the region's largest healthcare providers. Cincinnati Children's employs more than 16,000 people and has annual operating revenues of $2.6 billion. The incoming CEO ramped up the system's telehealth services during the COVID-19 pandemic and recently oversaw the construction of the medical center's $600 million Critical Care Building to serve patients with cancer, heart ailments and other complex conditions that is scheduled to open Nov. 6.
