Collaborations
UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital San Francisco Child Passenger and Pedestrian Safety (ChiPPS) Program
The UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital San Francisco Child Passenger and Pedestrian Safety (ChiPPS) Program is an injury prevention initiative dedicated to reducing transportation-related injuries and fatalities among children and families throughout San Francisco and the greater Bay Area. Supported through a $250,000 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) via the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the program provides education, outreach, safety equipment, and community engagement focused on keeping children safe on the road, in vehicles, and within their neighborhoods.
Launched in 2026 within the UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital San Francisco Emergency Department, the ChiPPS Program prioritizes outreach to communities disproportionately impacted by traffic-related injury and trauma. Through partnerships with schools, community centers, health care systems, and other organizations that serve families, the program aims to improve child passenger safety practices, pedestrian awareness, and access to life-saving resources across the region.
Pediatric Pandemic Network
As a hub site of the Pediatric Pandemic Network (PPN), centered at the UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals in San Francisco and Oakland, the UCSF Department of Emergency Medicine is dedicated to enhancing pediatric emergency preparedness, response, and resilience across the United States. Established in 2021 and supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), the PPN currently comprises 10 premier children’s hospitals nationwide.
UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals became a PPN hub site in 2022. Hospitals in the PPN serve as regional hubs dedicated to the improvement of emergency care for children (e.g., natural disasters, global health threats including pandemics, and other crises). PPN hospitals work with regional and national programs, academic institutions, community organizations, and individual experts to share educational resources and best practices.
Christopher Newton, MD, FACS, FAAP, is the Executive Principal Investigator (PI) of the PPN. Nicolaus Glomb, MD, MPH, is the UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals PPN Site PI.
World Health Organization
In 2017, our department was designated a World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Emergency and Trauma Care. At the time, it was the first such designation in the United States, and one of only two in the world specifically dedicated to building emergency care systems. To be designated a WHO Collaborating Centre, an organization must have done at least two years of work with the WHO and show a sustained commitment to the field. Renee Hsia, MD, MSc, and Andrea Tenner, MD, MPH, led the Department of Emergency Medicine's efforts to obtain the designation.
In the time that has followed, the focus of our Collaborating Centre has expanded to encompass integrated emergency, critical, and operative care. Carol Chen, MD, MPH, and Michael Lipnick, MD, currently co-direct the Collaborating Centre.