Explanation
Title
To honor and recognize Dr. Thomas N. Hansen for his outstanding service as Chief Executive Officer at Columbus Children's Hospital and to the citizens of the City of Columbus.
Body
WHEREAS, Tom Hansen, during his tenure as Chief Executive Officer of Columbus Children's Hospital, has proven himself to be a persistent and passionate advocate for children's health by providing the leadership and sustained commitment that our children so urgently need and richly deserve, and
WHEREAS, under Tom Hansen's direction, Children's Hospital has become the nation's fifth largest freestanding children's hospital, one of the country's ten largest pediatric research centers and a recognized leader in pediatric education, and
WHEREAS, Tom Hansen has worked diligently with civic leaders and public officials to expand the hospital's commitment to and impact on the larger community through the signing of the Good Neighbor Agreement, the growth of its Close to Home primary care centers that are providing services in underserved neighborhoods, the expansion of services through the Central Ohio Poison Center and the establishment of the Center for Child and Family Advocacy, and
WHEREAS, Tom Hansen has championed research efforts at Children's Hospital and the Children's Research Institute that are achieving unimaginable breakthroughs in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of childhood diseases, serving as a magnet for recruiting the best and brightest pediatric specialists to Children's Hospital, encouraging businesses to expand and locate in Greater Columbus and playing a vital role in giving our community a critical mass in the rapidly growing biomedical field - with the potential to improve the economy directly and through spin-off enterprises that grow out of their discoveries; and
WHEREAS, Tom Hansen has positioned Children's Hospital to move forward with a plan for transforming pediatric health care and research in Columbus, which will create a pediatric health center where children receive the best care anywhere in the world and where caring and curing go hand in hand, now; therefore
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS:
That we applaud Tom Hansen for his success in improving children's health and for his many contributions to our community's efforts to protect and save children's lives; and we wish him well as he assumes the role of President and Chief Executive Officer at Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center in Seattle, Washington.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a copy of this Resolution be presented to Tom Hansen as a token of our esteem and appreciation.