Department of Pediatrics
Department Leadership
Our vice chairs have primary responsibilities for a variety of functions within the department. This group meets regularly with the Chair, and together acts as a deliberative body to set policy and direction. Each also makes independent decisions within his or her area of responsibility.
Gregory Conners, MD, MPH, MBA, FACEP, FAAP
Stanley A. August Professor and Chair, Department of Pediatrics
Executive Director, Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital
Gregory P. Conners, MD, MPH, MBA, FAAP, FACEP is Stanley A. August Professor and Chair of Pediatrics at SUNY Upstate Medical University’s Norton School of Medicine, as well as Professor of Emergency Medicine and of Public Health and Preventive Medicine. He is the Executive Director of Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital. He is a graduate of Amherst College (B.A., cum laude), SUNY Stony Brook School of Medicine (M.D.), and the University of Rochester (M.P.H., M.B.A.). Dr. Conners did a Pediatrics residency and a Pediatric Emergency Medicine fellowship at Children’s National Medical Center.
His research interests include foreign body ingestion and quality improvement through leadership. Dr. Conners chairs the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Pediatric Emergency Medicine is a Pediatric Emergency Care editorial board member, and is an Associate Editor of Internal and Emergency Medicine.
Ann Botash, MD
Vice Chair for Educational Affairs
Ann Botash, MD is Vice Chair for Educational Affairs, with responsibility for all aspects of education in the department: undergraduate, graduate, and continuing. This impressive scope of our education services is outlined in this report. Ann has also served Upstate in several leadership roles, including previously as Interim Chair of Pediatrics, and currently as Senior Associate Dean and Distinguished Education Professor. She is also the Director of our Division of Child Abuse Pediatrics.
Ann is a well-known figure in pediatrics nationally. She has received the Advocacy Award from the Ambulatory Pediatrics Association, is past president of the Helfer Society, and is a child abuse pediatrician.
Scott Schurman, MD
Vice Chair for Clinical Affairs
Scott Schurman, MD continues to serve as our Vice Chair for Clinical Affairs. Scott also directs our highly-regarded and growing program in kidney diseases, as Director of our Pediatric Nephrology Division. In his Vice Chair role, Scott has ultimate responsibility for clinical activity in the department. He has played an important role in our recent growth in faculty and programs. As we have grown and expanded into new ambulatory areas, Scott has overseen these as medical director
Leonard Weiner, MD
Vice Chair for Academic Affairs
SUNY Distinguished Service Professor Leonard Weiner, MD rounds out the department leadership team as Vice Chair for Academic Affairs. A former interim chair of our department, with a national reputation for clinical care and research in infectious diseases, Len is well suited for this role. Len has overall responsibility for our research programs, as is shown in our large number of publications and presentations. He is also the long-time Director of our Division of Pediatric Immunology and Infectious Disease.
Pediatrics by the Numbers
| Measure | 2020 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|
| Inpatient Discharges | 4,266 | 4,819 |
| Observation Patients | 1,720 | 1,809 |
| Average length of stay, days (inpatient and observation, combined) | 2.8 | 2.8 |
| Pediatric ED Visits | 21,775 | 27,817 |
| Admissions from Pediatric ED | 3,380 (15.5%) | 4,062 (14.6%) |
| Observations from Pediatric ED | 1,054 (4.8%) | 1,170 (4.2%) |
| Pediatric Outpatient Visits | 62,140 | 71,016 |
| Pediatric Surgery Procedures (age < 19) | 3,263 | 3,675 |