Eleven hospitals earned a spot on U.S. News & World Report‘s 2026-27 Best Children’s Hospitals Honor Roll, published Sept. 15, a designation for hospitals with the highest rankings across all 11 pediatric specialties evaluated. Their leaders include physicians and a nurse, with tenures ranging from less than a year to more than a decade.
U.S. News and RTI International collected and examined data from 114 children’s hospitals and surveyed thousands of pediatric specialists for the 20th edition, which names 90 top pediatric hospitals across 34 states and Washington, D.C.
Here are the leaders of each hospital recognized on the honor roll (hospitals are listed in alphabetical order):
Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago: Tom Shanley, MD, has served as president and CEO since December 2019. He joined the hospital in 2015 as chairman and chief research officer and previously was associate dean for clinical and translational research at the University of Michigan.
Boston Children’s Hospital: Kevin Churchwell, MD, became CEO in March 2021. He joined the hospital in 2013 as executive vice president of health affairs and COO and was named president in 2018.
Children’s Hospital Colorado (Aurora): Jena Hausmann has served as president and CEO since May 2015. She joined the hospital in 2004 and was promoted to COO in 2008 and president in 2011.
Children’s Hospital Los Angeles: Paul Viviano joined as president and CEO in 2015. He previously served as CEO of UC San Diego Health System.
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia: Madeline Bell will retire Oct. 1 after 11 years as CEO and nearly 40 years at CHOP, where she began as a pediatric nurse. President Joseph Mitchell, MD, who joined in April 2025, will succeed her as president and CEO.
Children’s National Hospital (Washington, D.C.): Michelle Riley-Brown has served as president and CEO since July 2023. She previously was president of Texas Children’s Hospital West Campus and Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands.
Cincinnati Children’s: Steve Davis, MD, became president and CEO in November 2021. He joined the system in 2015 and spent six years as COO.
Nationwide Children’s Hospital (Columbus, Ohio): Tim Robinson became CEO in July 2019. He joined the hospital in 1995 and previously served as CFO.
Seattle Children’s Hospital: Christopher Longhurst, MD, became CEO in January. He previously served as chief medical officer and chief digital officer at UC San Diego Health.
Texas Children’s Hospital (Houston): Debra Sukin, PhD, became president and CEO in October 2024, succeeding Mark Wallace, who led the organization for 35 years. She joined as president in January 2024 from Houston Methodist.
UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh: Diane Hupp, DNP, RN, has served as president since January 2022. She spent nearly two decades as the hospital’s chief nursing officer and vice president of operations.
