Cincinnati Children's Hospital has landed on Forbes' Best Employers for Women list for the ninth consecutive year, a streak that stretches back to the award's first edition in 2018. The recognition carries local weight: as of early 2025, more than 1,025 employees worked at the health system's Liberty Township campus on Yankee Road, making it one of the township's largest employers.
The health system ranked No. 39 nationally out of 700 companies on the 2026 Forbes list, No. 1 in Cincinnati and No. 3 across all industries in Ohio. Among pediatric health systems nationwide, only one ranked higher.
Forbes and market research firm Statista compiled the rankings from a survey of nearly 150,000 women who work for companies with at least 1,000 employees. Participants rated employers on working conditions, salary, parental leave, family support and flexibility.
Chief operating officer Dr. Evaline Alessandrini said in the health system's Aug. 4 announcement that Cincinnati Children's invests in professional development, leadership pathways and flexibility to support women's career growth. The system employs more than 19,600 people and handles 1.7 million patient encounters annually.
Liberty Campus growth
The Liberty Campus at 7777 Yankee Road, near the I-75/Ohio 129 interchange, opened Aug. 11, 2008, and has grown from 12 inpatient beds to 42. It now operates a 24/7 emergency department, eight operating suites, a blood bank and a family resource center. The campus also houses the $120 million Proton Therapy Center, which opened in 2016 and holds the world's only proton treatment gantry fully dedicated to research.
Patient volume has nearly tripled since the campus's first year, reaching 282,000 encounters annually, including an average of 60 surgeries a day.
That growth is set to accelerate. Liberty Township trustees gave preliminary approval in January 2025 to a $365 million expansion that will nearly triple inpatient beds to 114 by 2028 and add a 150,000-square-foot medical office building. The project is expected to create at least 250 new jobs over five years.
"Children's Liberty campus and the Proton Therapy Center is one of Liberty's crown jewels," Township Trustee Tom Farrell said in January 2025, when trustees approved the expansion. "Liberty Township, its residents, and its businesses are better because of Children's Hospital."
What's ahead
The medical office building is targeted for completion in 2027, with the expanded hospital beds expected by 2028. The health system lists Liberty Campus openings at Jobs.CincinnatiChildrens.org.
