The Liver Center

Rapid, Accurate and Responsive Diagnosis and Treatment

Inside the Liver Center

Meet Dr. Alexander Weymann, Director of the Liver Center at Nationwide Children's

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Liver Center (Hepatology)

The Liver Center at Nationwide Children’s Hospital is an integral part of the Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, caring for a wide range of liver diseases through medical management, surgery or potentially liver transplant.

If your child has a medical issue related to the liver or gallbladder, they will be treated by the experts on the Liver Center team. This dedicated group of physicians, nurses and other professionals provides a range of specialized inpatient and outpatient services for children with inherited or acquired conditions. Liver problems can be life-threatening and life-changing. Quick evaluation, correct diagnosis and early treatment can impact long-term health, so the Liver Center physicians are committed to seeing all outpatient referrals within 48 hours.

US News Badge Gastroenterology

Nationwide Children's Hospital is ranked by U.S. News & World Report for Gastroenterology and GI Surgery.

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Our Continuum of Care

Many liver conditions can start at birth and continue through childhood. Others may be acquired later in life through an infection or a reaction to a drug. The Liver Center team is structured to provide continuity of care as a child transitions from inpatient to outpatient management and pediatric to adult care, helping ensure the very best outcomes.

Inpatient Consult Services

Every day, the Liver Center team evaluates children who are in the hospital for other medical reasons, but may show signs of having liver issues. They coordinate inpatient care with the other medical teams, and if necessary, will continue to see the child on an outpatient basis.

Outpatient Clinic

The team of physicians, nurses and dietitians regularly sees children with chronic liver disease and other related issues in the outpatient clinic. Children with liver disease often have challenges with growth and take many types of medications. Staff work closely with families to educate them about their child’s nutritional and medicinal needs.

Liver Transplantation

Nationally accredited by the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), the Liver Transplant program at Nationwide Children’s Hospital is dedicated to achieving the best possible outcomes for every child requiring liver transplantation.

Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)

Babies in the NICU are paired with one physician team member while they are at the hospital. Once the babies are discharged, the same physician will provide follow-up care on an outpatient basis.

Center for Healthy Weight and Nutrition

As the nation’s childhood obesity epidemic continues, one of the most common issues the Liver Center treats is non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The team works closely with health care professionals in the Center for Healthy Weight and Nutrition to monitor and manage fatty liver disease as children undergo weight reduction treatments. Complications from untreated fatty liver disease can lead to permanent scarring and the need for a liver transplant.

Our Team

The comprehensive team of physicians, transplant surgeons, nurses, social workers, pharmacists and dietitians has extensive experience in helping families navigate the practical, emotional and financial aspects of caring for a child with liver disease and related conditions – including pre- and post-liver transplant care.

Nationwide Children's Hospital Medical Professional

Alexander Weymann

Alexander Weymann, MD, a pediatric gastroenterologist and hepatologist, is the director of the Liver Center, and medical director of Liver Transplantation at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. An assistant professor of Clinical Pediatrics at The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Dr. Weymann is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics in Pediatric Gastroenterology, as well as Pediatric Transplant Hepatology.

Nationwide Children's Hospital Medical Professional

Monique L. Goldschmidt

Monique L. Goldschmidt, MD, a pediatric gastroenterologist and hepatologist, is co-medical director of the Liver Center and Liver Transplantation at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. An assistant professor of Clinical Pediatrics at The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Dr. Goldschmidt earned her medical degree from Boston University School of Medicine, and completed her Pediatrics residency as well as fellowships in Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, and Advanced/Transplant Hepatology at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center.

Jaimie D. Nathan, MD

Jaimie D. Nathan

Jaimie D. Nathan, MD, FACS, is Chief of Pediatric Abdominal Transplant and Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery at Nationwide Children’s and surgical director of Liver Transplant. A renowned pediatric transplant surgeon, Dr. Nathan has extensive experience in liver transplants – including performing transplants in patients as young as 12 months. Areas of expertise include utilizing all technical variant grafts in liver transplantation, including split livers, reduced-sized grafts and living donor liver transplantation, to optimize outcomes and minimize time on the waiting list.

Cheryl Gariepy

Cheryl E. Gariepy

Cheryl E. Gariepy, MD, is an Associate Professor of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition at Nationwide Children's Hospital and The Ohio State University College of Medicine. She is the Associate Director for Research of the Pediatric Gastroenterology Fellowship at Nationwide Children's. Her areas of clinical interest include genetic gastrointestinal disease and disorders of the liver and pancreas.

Nationwide Children's Hospital Medical Professional

Carol J. Potter

Carol Potter, MD, is an attending pediatric gastroenterologist in the Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition at Nationwide Children's Hospital, and an Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at The Ohio State University College of Medicine. Dr. Potter specializes in liver disease.

Michael Markham, BSN, RN, CCRN

Mike Markham

Micheal Markham, BSN, RN, CCRN, is a registered nurse at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, serving as transplant nurse coordinator in the Liver Center. Micheal obtained his bachelor’s degree from Chamberlain College of Nursing and has been with Nationwide Children’s since 1995. His clinical background includes more than 10 years in the pediatric and cardiothoracic ICUs and more than nine years with the Heart Transplant and Heart Failure Program. He has interests in quality assurance and performance improvement (QAPI) regulations and policy. Micheal is a clinical nursing instructor for Central Ohio Technical College and an active member of the several professional societies, including American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN), American Nurses Association (ANA), National Association of Transplant Professionals (NATCO), American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD), Society of Pediatric Nurses (SPN), International Transplant Nurses Society (ITNS) and Ohio Nurses Association (ONA).

Brittany Morrow, BSN, RN, CPN

Brittany Morrow

Brittany Morrow, BSN, RN, CPN, is a registered nurse at Nationwide Children’s Hospital where she serves as transplant nurse coordinator in the Liver Center. Brittany has been a certified pediatric nurse since 2010 and earned her bachelor’s degree from Ohio University in 2012. Her clinical background has focused on providing care across the continuum for abdominal transplant patients. She began her career as a bedside nurse at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. After obtaining her bachelor’s degree in nursing she became a transplant nurse coordinator at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital where she spent four years specializing in the care of liver, intestinal and multi-organ transplant recipients. Her interests include providing exceptional and individualized care coordination to complex chronic patients, pre- and post-transplant patient and family education, and protocol and program development. She is an active member of the International Transplant Nurses Society (ITNS).

Meet Our Liver Center Team

Patient Story

Rex Shunt Claire's Story

Rex Shunt Surgery for Portal Vein Thrombosis: Claire's Story

When 3-year-old Claire woke up throwing up blood in the middle of the night her parents rushed her to the ER. What they thought was a GI bleed, turned out to be so much more. Claire was diagnosed with portal vein thrombosis, a vascular disease of the liver that occurs when a blood clot occurs in the hepatic portal vein. Luckily, Nationwide Children's Hospital has the programs and the expertise to treat the condition through surgery.

Hepatology Research 

Liver Center physicians collaborate with other scientists around the nation to evaluate the impact of new treatments for liver diseases like hepatitis C – and the impact of other types of medications on liver health. Learn more about current research studies or participating in a clinical trial.

View Open Clinical Trials

Hepatology Family Resources

Conditions We Treat

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