OU Health Announces Chief Administrative Officer of Children’s Services

OU Health, Oklahoma’s only integrated, comprehensive academic health system, has named Kendal Pinkston chief administrative officer of children’s services.

Pinkston’s transition into the new role will commence immediately. She previously served as chief operating officer at Oklahoma Children’s Hospital OU Health since February 2018 and prior to that, served as the vice president of operations for Oklahoma Children’s Hospital.

In the new role, Pinkston will report to OU Health Chief Operating Officer, Jonathan Curtright, MBA, MHA, and oversee children’s services, including women and newborn services, at Oklahoma Children’s Hospital and across the integrated academic health system. Pinkston’s role includes strategic initiatives to advance children’s services and execution of enterprise priorities in all facets of business operations. The new role will lead seamless integration of services across the pediatric patient care continuum and optimize overall quality and patient experience as well as cohesive and comprehensive patient navigation.

“Oklahoma Children’s Hospital plays an essential and core role in the long-term vision of OU Health as the state’s flagship referral center for unique and highly specialized children’s care. Kendal’s years of experience with children's inpatient services, makes her a natural fit for this new role. She has worked at Oklahoma Children’s Hospital since 2013 and is very dedicated to ensuring quality health services for the children and families of Oklahoma,” said Curtright.

While COO of Oklahoma Children’s Hospital, Pinkston operationalized the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit expansion, cardiac cath lab upgrades as well as development and growth of children’s cardiovascular surgery and neurosciences clinical services. The expanded pediatric intensive care unit within Oklahoma Children’s Hospital provided 34 additional non-cardiac intensive care unit beds for children up to 18 years old and dramatically improved the capacity to care for children in Oklahoma requiring high-intensity and high-tech services. She oversaw over $60 million of capital projects at Oklahoma Children’s Hospital.

Pinkston served as planning chief for OU Health’s COVID-19 Incident Command Center response and collaborated on key service line and strategic initiatives including the pediatric robotic program, hospital-based clinic transitions, off-campus clinic expansion and executive oversight of blood administration improvement project.

Interim Chair of the Department of Pediatrics at OU College of Medicine, Robert Katz, M.D., said, “Oklahoma Children’s Hospital provides specialized pediatric services that are unavailable anywhere else in the state. Kendal is a very capable and collaborative leader and I am confident that she will excel in the new role.”

Pinkston joined OU Health in 2006 after completing a Master of Health Administration degree. She has served on the board of Ronald McDonald House Charities Oklahoma City since 2017 and served as Health Professions Educator at Hudson College of Public Health at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center.