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Kentucky Children's Hospital Dedicates Division
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Dec. 9, 2008) − Kentucky Children's Hospitaltoday dedicated and named the Heinrich A. Werner, M.D. Division of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine. The division is named in honor of Dr. Heinrich Werner, former vice chair and associate professor of the University of Kentucky College of Medicine Department of Pediatrics and medical director of Kentucky Children's Hospital Division of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine. Werner died at age 49 last year.
Attending the dedication were Werner's widow, Nancy Werner, and their sons, Karl, Thomas and Martin, along with Werner's brother Reinhard Werner and faculty and staff at Kentucky Children's Hospital.
"He was a leader in many ways in the UK HealthCare enterprise and always an advocate for the best care for Kentucky's children," said Dr. Tim Bricker, professor and chair, Department of Pediatrics, UK College of Medicine and physician-in-chief, Kentucky Children's Hospital. "Heinich was instrumental in building our pediatric intensive care unit and Kentucky Children's Hospital."
Werner had a dedicated team of fellow faculty and staff. Many said Werner was a teacher, mentor and friend to faculty, nurses, staff, residents and students alike. Werner was admired for his sense of humor, empathy, ability to communicate with families and dedication to the care of the children in the Pediatric ICU.
He also was recognized for the development of the pediatric sedation service at the Kentucky Children’s Hospital, which helps to relieve anxiety and pain in children undergoing painful or frightening therapeutic and diagnostic procedures. This program was innovative when Werner started it at UK some 11 years ago, and it has now become the standard of care nationwide.
“To comment on Heinrich’s immense clinical skills would only scratch the surface of the man," said Dr. Joe Iocono, assistant professor, departments of pediatrics and surgery, UK College of Medicine, and a pediatric surgeon. “Heinrich embodied the very core of who all of us strive to be – a gifted clinician, a devoted husband and father, a mentor for students, residents and fellow faculty, and above all, a champion for children’s health care in our region."
A national leader in pediatric intensive care medicine, Werner became a faculty member at the University of Kentucky in 1994 as an assistant professor of pediatrics and a physician in the pediatric intensive care unit at Kentucky Children's Hospital. In 1996, he became chief of the pediatric intensive care unit and was promoted to associate professor of pediatrics and anesthesiology in 1996.
Werner, a native of Kassel, Germany, attended the University of Mainz Medical School in Mainz, West Germany, and received his medical degree at UCLA School of Medicine. He served his residency in pediatrics at Duke University Medical Center, which included a six-month senior resident exchange program at the University of Oxford in England.
After completion of his residency, Werner served a clinical fellowship in pediatric critical care at British Columbia Children's Hospital in Vancouver, Canada. During that time, he participated in a fellowship exchange at Kinderspital, Zurich, Switzerland. In addition, Werner did a research fellowship in pediatric critical care at the Pulmonary Research Laboratory at the University of British Columbia. His research focused on myocardial function during experimental sepsis.
Werner served in the military as a physician of the 63rd Tank Battalion in Arolsen, Germany. Following his required military duty, Werner accepted a position in a general practitioner's office in Dalieden, Germany, followed by his appointment as a staff physician in the emergency room at British Columbia Children's Hospital.
University appointments followed. Werner became a staff physician in the pediatric intensive care unit of the Deutsches Herzzentrum Berlin, the Berlin Heart Institute at Rudolph-Virchow University. He also was a registrar in the pediatric intensive care unit of the Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne, Australia.
During his tenure at UK, Werner also served as interim chairman of pediatrics in the UK College of Medicine. He was instrumental in increasing patient care services within the children’s hospital.
Werner received many awards and honors during his tenure at UK, including the Warren E. Wheeler Teacher of the Year Award for several years; the Jacqueline A. Noonan Role Model of the Year Award; the Best Grand Rounds Award; and the Miracle Maker Award which was renamed last year in his honor. He was voted as a Best Doctor in America, published extensively and was a member of numerous professional organizations.
For more information on the Heinrich A. Werner Division of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, go to Kentucky Children's Hospital.
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