Former Valley Children’s Patient Now Leads Innovation Lab to Improve Pediatric Care

Published December 4, 2025

MADERA, Calif. – Chelsea Harkness grew up walking the halls of Valley Children’s Hospital as a patient battling acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Today, she’s back in those same hallways – but now she’s leading efforts to innovate and improve care for kids.

Chelsea is the manager of George’s Idea Lab, which launched in 2019 and partners with The Innovation Institute, a national independent medical product incubator and healthcare services provider.

As part of the program, Chelsea talks with doctors, nurses and other medical professionals to identify issues they encounter with medical devices or procedures. From there, she works closely with product development engineers and commercialization specialists to find solutions.

Her passion for improving care comes from her personal experience of battling cancer at the hospital as a child.

Chelsea during her battle with acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

“This place means a lot to me, and it’s very surreal to walk through the same doorways and the same hallways as I did as a kid, going through some very difficult times,” Chelsea said.

She says the team at Valley Children’s felt like a second family during her treatment. Now, she hopes her work can make hospital stays easier for kids facing similar journeys.

“I know how difficult it is to be in the hospital,” Chelsea said. “I’m just grateful to be a part of anything that’s able to make the journey a little bit better for the next kid.”

For Chelsea, one of the most rewarding parts of her role is collaborating with the people who once cared for her.

“I love working here and all the people that I get to work with,” she said. “They have the most beautiful passion and expert knowledge. I mean, I get to work with my heroes every single day.”