Dr. Alisa Gaskell Named Modern Healthcare Innovators Award Winner

Dr. Alisa Gaskell, Chief Genomics Officer at Children's Hospital Colorado, has been honored with the prestigious Modern Healthcare Innovators Award. The award recognizes healthcare leaders who transform patient care through groundbreaking initiatives that improve health outcomes, operational efficiency and access to critical services.

"The very best of innovation in pediatric medicine"

Chief Genomics Officer revolutionizes precision medicine for children with rare diseases "Alisa represents the very best of innovation in pediatric medicine," said Jena Hausmann, President and CEO of Children’s Colorado. "Her vision for integrated genomics has fundamentally changed how we diagnose and treat children with the rarest, most complex conditions, giving families answers and hope where none existed before."

A unified approach to whole-genome testing

Since joining Children's Colorado, Dr. Gaskell has pioneered an integrated genomics system that deploys whole-genome testing across the entire health system, from oncology to prenatal care to rare diseases. Rather than building separate specialty laboratories, she created a unified, technology-centric approach that processes 4 million mutations per patient, distinguishing normal human variation from disease-driving mutations with unprecedented precision.

Transforming outcomes for the rarest cases

The impact has been nothing short of life-changing. In one remarkable case, one-year-old Rowan was transferred from Montana to Children's Colorado, where Dr. Gaskell's system detected a genomic needle in a haystack — one of only three patients ever diagnosed with this ultra-rare mutation. The diagnosis enabled oncologists to treat Rowan and prevent amputation. Without this integrated approach, diagnosis could have been significantly delayed, potentially resulting in the loss of Rowan's fingers.

Impact at scale

Since 2020, the program has issued more than 27,000 patient results, with over 70% completed in the last two years alone. The laboratory now processes more than 250 samples weekly across cancers, rare disease, prenatal care and pharmacogenomics. Most remarkably, the program achieves a 50% diagnostic yield for the most complex cases, dramatically exceeding the industry standard of 15-25%.

In 2025 alone, the system identified 24 billion variants, including 149 million unique mutations, with nearly 50% appearing in only a single patient, underscoring the program's extraordinary capability to serve children with the rarest conditions.

Innovation through inclusion

Dr. Gaskell's leadership extends beyond scientific achievement. She has assembled a unique, cross-functional workforce that includes geneticists, oncologists, pathologists, bioinformaticians, data engineers, software engineers, medical technologists and statisticians — all working together with a shared vision.

"For me, a culture of innovation requires a culture of inclusion," said Dr. Gaskell. "No one can build something this transformative alone."

Precision medicine for every patient

Her motivation is deeply personal. While traditional medicine addresses concerns of the majority, Dr. Gaskell is driven to find solutions for every patient—even those with the rarest conditions. By focusing on precision medicine for individuals rather than protocols for populations, she is reshaping how genomics serves pediatric patients nationwide and around the world.

The program's ripple effects demonstrate its transformative potential: one prenatal case diagnosed an entire family's inherited mutation, enabling parents who struggled to maintain pregnancies to pursue IVF and finally build their family.

What's next for genomics at Children's Colorado

Designed for scalability and sustainability from inception, Dr. Gaskell's program is approaching financial self-sufficiency — exceptional for a program in its early stages — and plans expansion into additional service lines, including mental health, where genomics can significantly impact treatment decisions.