Nemours Children’s Health Names Vanessa A. Olbrecht, MD, MBA, FASA, as New Chair of Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine

Nemours Children’s Health announced today that Vanessa A. Olbrecht, MD, MBA, FASA, will serve as Chair of Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine for Nemours Children’s Health, Delaware Valley. Dr. Olbrecht will provide strategic leadership while also driving the creation of transformational research and pursuing excellence in quality, safety and improvement measures. In addition, she will focus on academic training as well as retaining and recruiting top talent in a competitive marketplace.

“Dr. Olbrecht possesses a wealth of clinical and academic experience, along with a relentless commitment to providing the highest-quality care, and an innovative spirit that fuels her ability to be a trailblazer in her field,” said Meg Frizzola, DO, FAAP, Chief of Medical Staff, Nemours Children’s Health, Delaware Valley. “We are proud to welcome Dr. Olbrecht to Nemours with her extensive qualifications and passion for advancing pediatric healthcare.”

Dr. Olbrecht brings to Nemours Children’s many burgeoning accomplishments including current research on the use of biofeedback-based virtual reality (VR) for pain management, which has recently garnered more than $1.1 million in public and private funding, and additional funding through the National Institutes of Health Seedling Program.

“Nemours Children’s Health is an esteemed pediatric institution committed to not only clinical excellence, but also academic excellence,” Dr. Olbrecht said. “I am proud to be joining Nemours as the Chair of Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine and excited to collaborate with colleagues to improve safety, quality and patient outcomes. In addition, I feel privileged that Nemours is embracing my current research endeavors and look forward to a day when VR is an integral part of everyday pain management.”

Dr. Olbrecht serves on the Board of Directors for the Society for Pediatric Sedation as well as on the Executive Committee as the Chair of the Quality and Safety Committee. Prior to Nemours, Dr. Olbrecht served as the Vice Chair of Quality Improvement and Development and the Director of Fetal Anesthesiology at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. After completing her fellowship, she joined the faculty at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center where she worked as an Associate Professor in Anesthesiology and Pediatrics and the Director of Quality Improvement and Accreditation for Procedural Sedation for the institution. She was also the Associate Director of Research and the Clinical Director of the Procedure Center.

Dr. Olbrecht obtained her MD from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and completed her residency in anesthesiology at Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Olbrecht also completed a pediatric anesthesia fellowship at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. She received her MBA from the University of North Carolina Chapel.