“This $2 million grant will allow The Christ Hospital Health Network to serve the growing population of patients in the Tri-State region who are suffering from end stage heart failure,” said Debbie Hayes, President and CEO of The Christ Hospital Health Network. “Using innovative technology and groundbreaking clinical research, this new program within our Heart & Vascular Institute will help us to continue our mission and will enable our teams to utilize the newest and most effective mechanical heart technology.”

Robert Dowling, MD, Surgical Director of The Christ Hospital Health Network Heart Transplant Program and the Chris and Trey Heekin Family Endowed Chair for Cardiac Transplantation, has joined the network’s team of cardiovascular research experts to lead this new program.

“About 8,000 Americans annually need a new heart to survive, but with the limited supply of donor hearts, less than half of these patients will get transplanted,” said Dean Kereiakes, MD, FACC, MSCAI, President of The Heart & Vascular Institute and Medical Director of The Christ Hospital Research Institute. “Our region is underserved for cardiac transplantation and the gap is widening between those individuals who need a heart and the number of donor hearts available.”

The Harold C. Schott Foundation Mechanical Cardiac Support program was established to support the development of artificial hearts and other mechanical cardiac support devices. This program enables The Christ Hospital to offer patients with advanced cardiac disease options not available anywhere else in the region and not widely available in the country. Adding this service to the treatment options for patients will ensure that The Christ Hospital Health Network is at the national forefront for heart replacement therapies.

“Like other transplant centers around the country, our team is limited in the number of transplants we can perform due to the finite number of heart donors,” explained Dr. Dowling. “The development of artificial heart pumps that can be used as an alternative to heart transplantation will allow us to treat the increasing number of patients with heart failure. This extremely generous gift from the Harold C. Schott Foundation will help our team at The Christ Hospital develop the next generation of artificial heart pumps that will benefit our current patients and have a global impact on the treatment of advanced heart failure patients for generations to come.”

About the Harold C. Schott Foundation

Harold C. Schott was born in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1907 to Joseph and Nellie Schott. Harold and his brother, Walter E. Schott, began their careers by opening several automobile dealerships throughout the region. A staunch Cincinnati philanthropist, Harold formed the Harold C. Schott Foundation in 1959 for the purpose of funding grants to support healthcare, spiritual, arts, and educational institutions.

About The Christ Hospital Health Network

The Christ Hospital Health Network consists of an acute care hospital located in Mt. Auburn, a remote hospital location in Liberty Township, five ambulatory outpatient centers and dozens of medical offices throughout the region. For more than 130 years, The Christ Hospital has provided compassionate care to those it serves. Made up for more than 1,300 physicians and more than 6,500 team members, our mission is to improve the health of our community by providing exceptional outcomes in an affordable way. The Network was recognized by U.S. News & World Report as the #1 hospital in the Cincinnati Region, named to Newsweek’s World’s Best Hospitals list in 2022 and one of America’s 50 Best Hospitals by Healthgrades. It is also a Press Ganey Guardian of Excellence Award recipient, which recognizes top-performing healthcare organizations that achieve the 95th percentile or above of performance in patient experience.