Children's Hospital & Medical Center names Dr. Richard G. Azizkhan CEO: 4 things to know

Children's Hospital & Medical Center in Omaha, Neb., has named Richard G. Azizkhan, MD, president and CEO, effective Oct. 19.

Here are four things to know about Dr. Azizkhan.

1. Dr. Azizkhan will be a member of the hospital's board of directors, and succeeds Gary A. Perkins, who announced his retirement last September.

2. Dr. Azizkhan comes to Children's from Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, where he served as surgeon-in-chief, senior vice president of surgical services, professor of surgery and pediatrics, and vice chairman of the department of surgery at University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.

3. At Cincinnati Children's, Dr. Azizkhan led efforts to improve quality and safety, recruit key faculty, strengthen development and philanthropy endeavors, and develop numerous global institutional health affiliations worldwide. Under his leadership, the institution built more than 25 destination programs of clinical and academic preeminence.

4. Prior to his 17 years of service in Cincinnati, he was surgeon-in-chief and director of the department of pediatric surgery at Children's Hospital of Buffalo (N.Y.), as well as professor of surgery and pediatrics at State University of New York at Buffalo.