Pediatric Pioneer of Integrative Care Leaves a Lasting Legacy

As a child, Wendy Rolf dreamed of growing up to be a nurse. She wanted to provide hope and healing for kids, just as she'd seen nurses do for her brother after he went into the hospital for a severe head injury.

The very same day she graduated from the Jewish Hospital School of Nursing in 1976, she headed straight to Cincinnati Children's for an interview. Hours later, she was hired.

"Some of my best friends today are the nurses I met back then," Wendy says. "We were like a family. I was perfectly happy."

But Wendy did far more at the medical center than make lasting friendships. She went on to receive master's degrees in community health, health education and occupational health.

In 1998, she worked alongside her colleague, Deb Kaiser, and a small team of nurses to establish the Holistic Health Department at Cincinnati Children's-known today as Integrative Care. The program provides holistic care and support for kids and families during the healing process.

As our experts deliver the world-class, innovative medical care the hospital is known for, the Integrative Care team works in partnership with medical teams to teach effective ways to reduce stress, pain, discomfort and anxiety through evidence-informed approaches such as healing touch, mind-body practices and clinical massage therapy.

Thanks to Wendy's help, our Integrative Care program has grown over the years to become one of the largest and most renowned in the country, serving as a model for other hospitals who turn to us for guidance.

"It's about love and compassion. Holistic care means treating the whole person-physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually," Wendy shares. "It also means caring for the family and the medical team, which in turn helps the child. It's all connected."

Wendy has always been passionately committed to her work. So much so, that even in retirement, she continues to serve the kids and families who need us. She recently planned a gift through her will benefiting our Division of Child Life and Integrative Care. For her, it's a way to ensure that the program she started and helped cultivate can live on and continue offering these important services.

"In my life, being able to do the work I loved to do at Cincinnati Children's was a gift to me," says Wendy. "To be able to give a little something back means more to me than I can put into words."

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