PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — Starting next spring, Dr. Phyllis Dennery will lead pediatric care, teaching, and research at the Lifespan health system and The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, the institutions announced today.

Dennery, currently chief of the Division of Neonatology and Newborn Services at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania, will begin work in Rhode Island on April 15, 2015. She will serve as pediatrician-in-chief and medical director at Hasbro Children’s Hospital and as chair of the Department of Pediatrics at Brown.

In Philadelphia, Dennery oversees more than 300 neonatal intensive care beds in 11 hospitals as well as 90 medical faculty and staff members and 18 fellows. She earned her medical degree at Howard University and performed her residency at Children’s Hospital National Medical Center (both in Washington, D.C.). She then conducted research and taught at Stanford University from 1990 to 2003 before moving to Philadelphia.

Dennery’s research, consistently funded by the National Institutes of Health for 24 years, concerns lung problems and other medical conditions among newborns. She studies the regulation of lung gene expression in oxidative stress, in particular the enzyme heme oxygenase, which affects bilirubin production. In the clinic she specializes in neonatal jaundice, bronchopulmonary dysplasia and the long-term consequences of prematurity.

As chair of pediatrics at Brown, Dennery will lead academic programs at the hospital for medical students, residents, fellows alike. She will also oversee the advancement of research programs and faculty recruitment.

“We're delighted to welcome Dr. Phyllis Dennery to Hasbro Children's Hospital. Her long tenure as chief of the Division of Neonatology and Newborn Services at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania Health System demonstrates a deep commitment to excellence that is congruent with the mission of Hasbro Children’s Hospital,” said Dr. Timothy J. Babineau, president and CEO of Lifespan. “Having served as associate division chief at Stanford University and as tenured faculty at both Stanford and the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Dr. Dennery will continue to elevate our graduate programs for medical students and residents. Her credentials as a clinician, researcher, academic, and leader are truly exceptional.”

Babineau added, “Dr. Dennery’s appointment comes as Hasbro Children’s Hospital celebrates its 20th anniversary. It’s a unique institution in Rhode Island and a vital one, and I can think of no one better to lead Hasbro Children’s Hospital in the years ahead.”

Dr. Jack Elias, dean of medicine and biological sciences at Brown, said students and patients alike will benefit from Dennery’s work in Rhode Island. “Her extensive knowledge in neonatology makes her an excellent candidate for leading and training our students in the field of pediatrics,” Elias said. “We look forward to the significant contributions she will bring to clinical care, education, and research at Alpert Medical School and our affiliated hospitals.”

In her medical duties Dennery will oversee clinical programs including centers and clinics for pediatric imaging, hematology/oncology, asthma and allergies, neurodevelopment, and the heart.

Dennery is a member of the Institute of Medicine and has won numerous awards during her career, including the 2014 Marion Spencer Fay Award. She serves in many professional and scientific societies, including as an associate editor of the influential journal Pediatrics.

“We are thrilled to have someone with Dr. Dennery’s credentials, experience, and passion join our institutions,” Babineau and Elias wrote in a joint statement today, announcing her hiring to Lifespan and Brown staff.