Principal Gift From United Arab Emirates To Support Development Of Children's National Research & Innovation Campus

WASHINGTON, April 10, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Children's National today announced a $30 million gift from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), marking a major milestone in the creation of its new Research & Innovation Campus. The gift will help drive pediatric discoveries that save and improve the lives of children in the Washington, D.C. region and around the world.

In 2009, the UAE made its first gift to Children's National to fund the creation of the Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation. The institute has established Children's National as a leader in innovation and helped make surgery for children more precise, less invasive and pain-free. This gift is the latest chapter in a 10-year partnership between the D.C.-based hospital and the UAE, yielding $180 million for health advances that have benefitted thousands of children and families.

Children's National is redeveloping nearly 12 acres on the site of the former Walter Reed Army Medical Center for the one-of-a kind campus, scheduled to open next year. The UAE gift will support development of the new complex. It will host researchers, universities, companies and a rare disease institute, all working collaboratively to find solutions for some of childhood's most challenging diseases and conditions.

The campus also will include a conference theater to foster global collaboration and an outpatient care center. The care center will offer primary care services, genetic counseling and coordinated care services for children with genetic and metabolic diseases.

"We are deeply grateful for the United Arab Emirates' longstanding friendship and our shared belief that healthy children are the future of our societies," said Dr. Kurt Newman, president and CEO of Children's National. "Our great hope is that this new Research & Innovation Campus will lead to improved care for children everywhere."

Children's National will recognize the UAE's generosity by naming the main atrium of the research and innovation building for the nation's late founder, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

"The UAE is proud to partner with CNMC, a leader in pediatric care," said Ambassador Yousef Al Otaiba, UAE Ambassador in Washington, D.C. "The real power of this partnership is the opportunity it creates to find better treatments for children, not just in the U.S. or the UAE, but everywhere."

In 2009, Children's National named its main hospital campus in recognition of the UAE's philanthropic support of the hospital's mission. The partnership between Children's National and the UAE has included the development of international training and telemedicine programs, collaborative research and improvements in patient care in the U.S. and abroad. In 2018, the two formalized a collaboration to upgrade services at UAE hospitals, supporting continued development of innovative healthcare technologies and research that address children's health. Children's National has provided lifesaving and complex pediatric care services that currently are unavailable in the UAE to approximately 600 Emirati children.

About Children's National Research & Innovation Campus
The Children's National Research & Innovation Campus is an ecosystem of facilities and programs designed to more quickly translate discoveries into new treatments and technologies. The nearly 12-acre campus, located in Washington, D.C., combines the strengths of Children's National with those of public and private partners. It will open in 2020 with 160,000 sq. ft. of research and innovation space, with room to expand. Children's National's research at this location will focus on pediatric genomic and precision medicine to target an individual's disease and treatment more precisely for better outcomes, with fewer side effects. The new campus will improve patient access at the main hospital by freeing up space for high-demand critical care services.

About Children's National
Children's National, based in Washington, D.C., has served the nation's children since 1870. It is one of the nation's top-5 pediatric hospitals, and, for a second straight year, ranked No. 1 in newborn care, and is ranked in all specialties, by U.S. News & World Report. Children's National has been designated two times as a Magnet® hospital, a designation given to hospitals that demonstrate the highest standards of nursing and patient care delivery. This pediatric academic health system offers expert care through a convenient, community-based primary care network and specialty outpatient centers in the D.C. metropolitan area, including the Maryland suburbs and Northern Virginia. Home to the Children's Research Institute and the Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation, Children's National is the seventh-highest NIH-funded pediatric institution in the nation. Children's National is recognized for its expertise and innovation in pediatric care and as a strong voice for children through advocacy at the local, regional and national levels. For more information, follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

SOURCE Children's National Health System

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