Jarrard, a U.S.-based healthcare consulting firm focused on strategic communications and change management, has launched a Children’s Hospitals and Pediatric Healthcare specialty, expanding its academic health systems practice. The new segment is designed to address the distinct challenges facing pediatric providers, including Medicaid policy pressures, community health expectations, brand development, and philanthropy.
Building on Jarrard’s experience in academic medicine and its affiliation with Chartis, the specialty will advise independent and system-affiliated children’s hospitals as well as pediatric health services organizations. Its services span strategic positioning, public affairs and advocacy, internal communications, donor engagement, and research, reflecting the complex operating environment in which pediatric institutions function.
The specialty is led by Senior Vice President Tricia Geraghty, formerly Chief Marketing and Experience Officer at Children’s Wisconsin, along with Vice President Julie Ashby and Associate Vice President Elizabeth Middleton. Anne Hancock Toomey, Founding Partner and President of Jarrard, said, “Children’s hospitals are highly trusted and sit at the heart of their communities,” and added that leaders face mounting demands related to funding, community benefit, and competition.
Geraghty noted, “People deeply trust children’s hospitals, but they don’t always see the full story of impact.” She said the new practice aims to help pediatric leaders align strategy, communication, and engagement to protect funding and expand support. The launch is supported by Jarrard’s national research on public trust in children’s hospitals and early collaboration with the Children’s Hospital Association, reinforcing the firm’s focus on high-stakes healthcare transformation.