Sarah Elizabeth Friebert, MD

Meet Sarah Elizabeth Friebert, MD

Dr. Friebert is founder and director of the Haslinger Family Pediatric Palliative Care Center and the Emily Cooper Welty Expressive Therapy Center at Akron Children’s. A graduate of Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, she completed a residency in pediatrics at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia in Philadelphia, Pa. and a fellowship in pediatric hematology/oncology at Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio. Under her direction, the Haslinger Center features an accredited palliative care fellowship program and has achieved Advanced Certification in Palliative Care from The Joint Commission. Dr. Friebert is also the founding director of the hospital’s addiction services program, which addresses addiction in collaboration with community resources. She is a professor of pediatrics at Northeast Ohio Medical University, where she is also a founding member of the university’s Office of Palliative Care. Board-certified in pediatric hematology/oncology and hospice and palliative medicine, Dr. Friebert is past president of Akron Children’s medical staff and the inaugural chair holder of the Sarah Elizabeth Friebert Pediatric Palliative Care Endowed Chair. She’s also the founder, past chair and ongoing member of the Ohio Pediatric Palliative and End-of-Life Care Network (OPPEN). She is the author of multiple articles and book chapters and is an active research scientist, serving as program director for palliative care research at the Rebecca D. Considine Research Institute. She was co-principal investigator for a Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Health Care Innovation Award, and is principal investigator for multiple palliative care-related research initiatives, Dr. Friebert is also active in multiple local, regional, state and national educational, philanthropic and palliative care organizations.