Nathaniel Beers, MD, stepped into the role of president and CEO of Valhalla, N.Y.-based Blythedale Children’s Hospital Nov. 17, becoming only the third individual to lead the hospital in 66 years.
Prior to joining Blythedale, Dr. Beers served as executive vice president of community and population health at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, D.C. He also served as president of the HSC Health Care System in Washington, D.C., COO and chief of specialized instruction for the D.C. Public Schools, and held senior roles within the D.C. Department of Health.
Dr. Beers told Becker’s he’s excited about his new role and leading Blythedale in its next chapter. His tenure follows that of Larry Levine, who led the hospital for 26 years, and Robert Stone, who led the hospital for 40 years before that. Dr. Beers discussed what drew him to the specialty children’s hospital, outlined his priorities, and shared advice for his peers.
Editor’s note: Responses have been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Q: Blythedale has an extraordinary legacy of stable, visionary leadership. As you step into this role, how are you thinking about balancing continuity with innovation — especially given your unique background in public policy and education?
Dr. Nathaniel Beers: Blythedale, as you know, is an amazing organization with a long history. It’s about to reach its 135th year and, during that time, has been fortunate to have amazing leaders step forward to lead in caring for children with disabilities.
For me, there’s an opportunity to step into an organization that is in a good place — fiscally and from a leadership perspective. It has strong leaders throughout, and I see my role as helping the team think about what’s next. How can we increase our impact and reach more children and families across the region? How can we innovate while continuing to lead in the care of children with disabilities, not just in this region, but nationally?
I look forward to leading the team in those efforts and ensuring Blythedale continues to succeed locally and beyond.
Q: Given that 78% of Blythedale’s patients rely on Medicaid, how do you plan to navigate the fiscal pressures facing children’s hospitals, and what policy levers or partnerships do you see as most critical to sustaining care for medically complex children?
NB: Blythedale is unique because we provide specialty post-NICU/PICU care for children who are ready to leave an acute care setting but are not yet able to go home. We fill a critical space in the continuum of care for children and young adults. Given the pressures on acute care hospitals to discharge patients earlier, our partnerships with those hospitals are increasingly important. We need to understand the pressures they face and ensure we can meet their needs.
This work will also require advocacy — with payers, insurers, and the state legislature — to ensure we don’t lose sight of the needs of children with disabilities. We also need to make sure those children can successfully transition home. That means advocating for Medicaid funding for home health services, assistive technology and other community-based supports.
It’s essential that every provider in the care continuum receives adequate payment for the care they provide. Otherwise, they may not remain viable partners, and that affects our ability to deliver on our mission.
Q: You’ve worked across health, education and social services throughout your career. How do you envision integrating those sectors more fully at Blythedale to support whole-child care and improve long-term outcomes for patients and families?
NB: One of the things that drew me to Blythedale was the comprehensive set of services it provides. It’s the only hospital in the country that has its own school district within the hospital. Given my background leading special education in D.C. Public Schools, the opportunity to partner with a school district and focus on children with medical complexity in the classroom was a huge factor in my decision to take this role.
Families of children with disabilities already face higher out-of-pocket costs, and those pressures are only increasing. We need to look at how we, along with other community organizations, can step in to fill those gaps. This isn’t a time to go it alone. We must be good partners to our families and the broader community — across healthcare, education and social services — because this is a complex time for these children and families.
Q: What advice would you offer to other hospital CEOs stepping into leadership during this uncertain and transformative time in healthcare?
NB: It’s definitely a challenging time in healthcare. The needs of patients and families are growing, and financial pressures are intense. For new leaders, it’s important to take time to understand the unique pressures their organizations face. That means connecting with existing leadership and identifying both opportunities and threats.
It also means being willing to take calculated risks. This isn’t a time when leaders can sit back and hope to ride things out. We must take action and position our organizations for long-term success. I’ve been fortunate to have some time before I start to reflect and prepare, and I think that kind of space — if leaders can find it — can make a real difference.
