March 22, 2016

32316FAMILYFUNRUN640Don’t miss out on the fun at the fourth annual Texas Children’s Hospital and Houston Marathon Foundation Family Fun Run. Registration for the event ends at 5 p.m. Monday, March 28, so hurry and sign up if you haven’t already.

Families with children of all abilities are invited to participate in the run at 9 a.m. Saturday, April 9 at Texas Children’s Hospital West Campus.

The Family Fun Run will include both a 1K and 3K course. Participants – including those who need walkers and wheelchairs – are welcome. There will not be prizes given to top finishers as all participants will receive an award for taking part in an event designed to educate and encourage Houston-area families to adopt active, healthy lifestyles. Following the run, families can enjoy the H-E-B sponsored Family Fun Zone. The zone will be packed with snacks, special guests and more than 25 attractions.

Click here to register.

Additional information, including training guides, a video from last year’s event and volunteer opportunities can be found here.

Good luck and happy running!

32316HelenCurrier175Texas Children’s Hospital is pleased to announce Helen Currier, director of renal and pheresis services, was elected as President of the National Renal Administrators Association (NRAA).

Serving her term from October 2015 to October 2016, Currier will work with the NRAA Board of Directors to shape the future direction and vision for NRAA, especially as new models of payment and care delivery specific to Medicare beneficiaries with end-stage renal disease are tested and evaluated.

“These are exciting times as the NRAA is creating a milieu for developing and accessing the resources dialysis leaders need to grow new skills and abilities,” Currier said. “My vision is that we will champion education opportunities that will add value to the NRAA membership while effectively addressing external threats and protecting the standing of the independent, regional- and community-based dialysis providers of patient-centered, high-quality care.”

Currier was elected by her peer NRAA members as president-elect in 2014. The purpose of the NRAA is to provide renal administrators the opportunity for gaining continuing education, obtaining peer recognition and expanding development in the profession.

32316RudolphAwards640Melissa Carbajal (center), program director, congratulates Dr. John Hoover (left) and Dr. Tiffany Stafford (right), the 21st annual Arnold J. Rudolph Memorial Grand Rounds award recipients. The award recognizes third-year fellows in neonatal-perinatal medicine for outstanding teaching, patient care, scientific inquiry and professional integrity.

March 15, 2016

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Ryley Hoffman is considered somewhat of a miracle. The 17-year-old found herself in the fight for her life back in October 2015 after being run over by a pickup truck as she watched planes near George Bush Intercontinental Airport.

“At first, I just felt something go over me but I wasn’t sure what was happening and then I realized it,” said Ryley Hoffman during an interview with ABC-13. “I don’t remember too much after that except for being scared.”

After being rushed to a nearby emergency room, Ryley was transferred to Texas Children’s Hospital because of the severity of her injuries, which included a lacerated liver and kidney, broken ribs, and a collapsed lung.

Ryley spent 74 straight days at Texas Children’s enduring 10 surgeries, several stays in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and intense rehabilitation sessions. A total of 24 different services were involved in her care.

Now, Ryley is doing outpatient rehabilitation and continues to meet with the hospital’s trauma team for follow-up visits. She is expected to make a full recovery.

“Every single service here has touched Ryley in some way because of her injuries,” said Cassandra Mueller, one of several physician assistants who cared for the teenager. “Everyone – including Ryley – worked hard to make her recovery a success.”

Mueller’s colleague, physician assistant Brian Whitaker, agreed and called Ryley a fighter and an absolute joy to work with.

“Seeing how far Ryley has come justifies everything we do,” Whitaker said. “She could hardly walk when she came in here and now she’s moving around easily.”

Ryley’s mother, Robin Hoffman, said everyone involved in her daughter’s care was amazingly dedicated, attentive and professional.

“You can’t find the level of care she received anywhere except for Texas Children’s Hospital,” Hoffman said. “We became so accustomed to the hospital we feel it’s our home away from home.”

Surgeon-in-Chief Charles D. Fraser Jr. said Ryley’s situation is a perfect example of the multidisciplinary approach we take at Texas Children’s each and every day.

“Our team is committed to working together to treat the whole child, not just an injury or condition,” he said.

Watch the full ABC-13 interview with Ryley here.

Read a blog written by Ryley here.

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From the implementation of eco-friendly programs to reduce medical waste, enhance energy conservation and promote recycling practices, environmental sustainability at Texas Children’s touches all areas of operations within the hospital.

As the nation celebrates Earth Day next month, Texas Children’s Green Team is doing its part to reduce our organization’s environmental footprint. Over the last year, the Green Team has successfully engaged employees and staff around several collaborative initiatives to help Texas Children’s go green.

Below is a brief summary of some of these Green Team accomplishments:

Reduce medical waste – The conversion to reusable sharps containers at Main and West campuses in 2015 reduced medical waste by 15 percent. Since making the switch, the hospital has saved approximately 80,000 pounds of waste annually. Texas Children’s was spending $250,000 annually on traditional sharps containers plus disposal fees and now it expects to save $150,000 each year. The goal for 2016 is to reduce regulated medical waste by another 10 to 20 percent.

Maximize recycling – The Green Team installed more than 100 recycling bins at Main and West campuses in January 2016. Since the program’s implementation, 21,000 pounds of recyclable materials have been collected. These include aluminum cans, cardboard, non-confidential office paper, plastic bottles, newspapers, magazines and phone books. This year’s goals include standardizing office supplies to include more recycled options, optimizing the use of the toner recycle program and bolstering cardboard recycling education.

Save energy and reduce costs – Texas Children’s has reduced energy consumption by implementing a number of equipment upgrades while continually working with staff to build a culture of energy conservation system-wide.

  • Installed LED lamps in all Pavilion for Women elevators
  • Replaced 5,500 50-watt spot lamps with 7-watt LED lamps to reduce energy
  • Reduced chilled water consumption for A/C use by 20 percent to optimize better temperature control throughout the buildings
  • Reduced steam consumption by 25 percent by adjusting the heating water temperatures from 180 degrees Fahrenheit to 130 degrees Fahrenheit
  • Turned off bridge lights when enough natural light is coming through
  • Used the building automation system to turn off lighting and HVAC for unoccupied areas
  • Renegotiated electricity contract resulting in a cost savings of $670,000
  • Texas Children’s has saved more than $10 million in energy costs since 2008

Green transportation – In 2015, the Green Team unveiled Texas Children’s fleet of 12 shuttle buses equipped with an environmentally-friendly fueling system. Instead of using diesel, all shuttles are fueled by propane. Switching to this much cleaner-burning gas reduced our carbon footprint by 70 percent and makes Texas Children’s the first hospital in the Texas Medical Center to offer completely green-friendly shuttle service.

Save the date – Texas Children’s Earth Day Celebration

On Friday, April 22, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., the Green Team will host two celebrations on Earth Day – one on The Auxiliary Bridge at Main Campus and one at Texas Children’s Hospital West Campus.

Dozens of vendors will be available to provide eco-friendly, cost-saving tips to employees including how to become more energy efficient, tips on eating green, as well as ways to reduce waste and recycle more.

Two tree planting events are slated for Earth Day. West Campus President Chanda Cashen Chacón and Vice President Matt Schaefer will plant a tree at West Campus and Executive Vice President John Nickens will plant one at Main Campus thanks to the generous donations from Trees for Houston.

Stay tuned to Connect for more details about Texas Children’s Earth Day celebrations. Also, if you’d like to reach out to the Green Team with your green ideas, email teamgreen@texaschildrens.org.

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As Texas Children’s continues to expand our facilities and services to advance health care for children and women around the world, it is of the utmost importance for us to identify, recruit, engage and retain the best talent. To keep up with this expansive growth, Talent Acquisition is launching national recruitment strategies and investing in new and advanced technology. On Monday, April 18, Texas Children’s will be going live with a new applicant tracking system (ATS).

“These are exciting times for Texas Children’s as we are in the midst of unprecedented growth for the organization,” said Matt Perkins, assistant vice president of Talent Acquisition. “We need to continue to grow our community of team members who will unite, energize and inspire Texas Children’s with their infinite passion to deliver on our important mission.”

Powered by iCims, this ATS provides us with new technology, which works with PeopleSoft to enhance our current recruitment processes and experiences for both external and internal candidates, our hiring leaders as well as new hires.

“There are many features that will help us throughout the recruitment process in a more thoughtful approach that reflects Texas Children’s thought leadership as a premium health care employer,” Perkins said. “There are also social media components that will further engage prospective candidates.”

Learn more about Texas Children’s new ATS by clicking here.

As part of the transition to this new system, five online webinars will be available to Hiring Leaders from Tuesday, March 29 to Thursday, March 31. Hiring Leaders will receive a separate communication from HR Communications with details about these training sessions and how to register.

31616KristinaWilson175Kristina Wilson, a senior speech-language pathologist and clinical researcher on the Cleft Palate Team at Texas Children’s Hospital, was recently elected to the Executive Council of the American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association (ACPA), an international non-profit medical society of health care professionals who treat and/or perform research on oral cleft and craniofacial conditions.

In her role on the council, Wilson will help guide the 2,500-member organization in its efforts to foster communication and cooperation among professionals from all specialties involved in the treatment of children and adults with cleft lip, cleft palate, and craniofacial anomalies.

For more than 65 years, their goal has been to provide optimal care for this group of patients and their families. Because of the diverse needs of these patients, and the required services of many different specialists, interdisciplinary cooperation and team care is essential to the patients served.

Wilson has been providing such care for the past decade with the Cleft Palate Team at Texas Children’s Hospital. In addition to her role with the hospital, she holds a faculty appointment at Baylor College of Medicine in the Division of Plastic Surgery. She also is the assistant coordinator of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association’s Special Interest Group 5 – Craniofacial and Velopharyngeal Disorders.