Cincinnati Children’s Researchers to Vacate Aging Building
Post Date: May 31, 2022 | Publish Date:
About 150 employees engaged in medical research at Cincinnati Children’s will move from the Oak Campus to nearby locations in Avondale by the end of June 2022.
Plans call for the Oak Building at 619 Oak St., much of which dates to the 1920s, to eventually be demolished because it isn’t cost-efficient to operate. Also to be vacated and demolished is the neighboring Oak Professional Building at 620 Oak St.
Cincinnati Children’s hasn’t determined a use for the 6-acre site, which was home to Bethesda Oak Hospital before it closed in 2000. Cincinnati Children’s purchased the site in 2002 from TriHealth.
“While the Oak Building served its purpose over the past 20 years, we look forward to accommodating these employees at nearby locations operated by the medical center,” said Evaline Alessandrini, MD, chief operating officer of Cincinnati Children’s. “Given the critical nature of our academic mission, we have worked closely with our research teams to minimize or eliminate disruptions to their work.”
Cincinnati Children’s has more than 16,700 employees, and nearly one-third are engaged in research at various locations. The Cincinnati Children’s entities that currently occupy the Oak Campus are:
- The Gamble Vaccine Research Center, which will relocate outpatient studies to the Schubert Research Clinic on the first floor of the Clinical Sciences Pavilion (Location T) at the Burnet Campus. The Gamble Center’s overnight studies will move to the Academy Building on Reading Road. The Gamble Center has helped lead the way in the evaluation of lifesaving COVID-19 vaccines, and 11 of the 17 trials now underway at the center are related to that research.
- The Laboratory for Specialized Clinical Studies, which will move to Location R at the Burnet Campus. It provides lab testing to support clinical trials or investigations related to infectious diseases.
- The Discover Together BioBank, which will move to Vernon Place. The BioBank houses research samples such as blood and related information. Cincinnati Children’s researchers work with these samples to seek treatments or cures for diseases.
- The Center for Simulation and Research, which will move to Vernon Place. The center provides educational opportunities for healthcare professionals as well as medical students, caregivers and patients. On average, the center provides 13,000 learning experiences per year.
