Children's Hospital Colorado

COVID-19 Research and Innovation

When the novel coronavirus was identified and began to rapidly spread, our pediatric experts were closely watching the situation and devising a response. Experts from various departments within Children’s Hospital Colorado quickly came together during the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic to respond.

Collaboration between experts in our Infectious Disease Department and several other teams within Children’s Colorado led to the rapid implementation of coronavirus testing. In fact, we were the first hospital system in Colorado – and one of the first in the nation – to offer coronavirus testing. Foresight and quick action from experts within the Blood Donor Center led to the evaluation and use of convalescent plasma as a promising potential treatment for COVID-19.

In response to stay-at-home orders, our Telehealth Department made swift adjustments in the use of telemedicine to enable continuity of high-quality care for our pediatric patients.

It starts with a Q:

For the latest cutting-edge discoveries and innovative collaborations in COVID-19 research, read more in Q: Advances and Answers in Pediatric Health.

Discover more in Q:

Profile image of Dr. Sam Dominguez
“The idea of ‘What we do today prepares us for tomorrow’ has really carried us through. With no real end in sight, we’re grateful to have accomplished so much in such a short amount of time.”
Sam Dominguez, MD

What our COVID-19 response means to patients and the community

The collaborative efforts of experts across our hospital has led to increased access to COVID-19 testing and availability of antibody-rich convalescent plasma for critically ill patients. These efforts have benefited our patients and their families as well as our care team members and adult patients receiving treatment outside our hospital walls.

Children’s Colorado continues to adjust processes as necessary to limit the spread of infection and ensure the safety of team members, patients and the broader community.

In addition, COVID-19 prompted us to quickly ramp up our existing telehealth services within Children’s Colorado, which has led to valuable insights on its use. Our ability to rapidly provide increased access to virtual care across various specialties during the COVID-19 pandemic has proven that telehealth is an effective healthcare delivery method that has become a new standard of care.

As we continue to learn more about COVID-19, we are committed to sharing our knowledge with all healthcare providers by providing resources for healthcare professionals.

We also continue to investigate innovative methods of responding to the COVID-19 pandemic through review of the growing body of COVID-19 clinical research as well as our own research efforts.

Scientific Advisory Council

Rapid-cycle review of a growing body of evidence is informing how Children’s Colorado protects team members and delivers the best possible care during COVID-19 operations. More than 40 experts across Children’s Colorado have joined together to track more than 250 new articles released daily about the 2019 novel coronavirus. Four working groups rapidly review evidence to answer clinically and operationally relevant questions:

  • Clinical course and epidemiology: Edwin Asturias, MD, and Justin Lockwood, MD, lead this workgroup. It outlines the natural course of COVID-19 disease in children, with a focus on factors that predict worsening pulmonary, hematologic or immunologic status. Through improving our understanding of these factors, this group’s work guides clinicians in the timing of evaluation and management of patients throughout the phases of illness.
  • Diagnostics: Donna Curtis, MD, MPH/MSPH, leads this work group. It is reviewing the test characteristics and appropriate allocation of use of serologic and diagnostic assays to help guide decision-makers in determining appropriate use of these tests.
  • Clinical management/therapies: Juri Boguniewicz, MD, and Robert Fuhlbrigge, MD, PhD, lead this workgroup, which continues to synthesize the rapidly evolving literature on antiviral and adjuvant therapies, including anti-inflammatory medications, convalescent plasma, corticosteroids and anti-coagulation. The Scientific Advisory Council is compiling the clinical guidance documents iteratively updated by this team into an overall pathway for pediatric patients at Children’s Colorado.
  • Infection control: Suchitra Rao, MD, leads this workgroup, which has focused on improving the safety of providers in various clinical settings, including during minimally invasive surgeries. Recently, this group has focused on a QI project assessing the negative predictive value of a SARS-CoV-2-negative nasal wash in a child with no COVID-19 symptoms. The plan is to use the results of this project to help make operating room operations more efficient.

The advisory council is chaired by Marion Sills, MD, MPH, pediatric emergency medicine and Eva Nozik Grayck, MD, pediatric critical care.

COVID-19 research at Children's Colorado

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