July 11, 2017

On June 28, Texas Children’s Transplant Services held a celebration in honor of reaching an important milestone – the completion of 1,500 transplants.

The milestone further solidifies Texas Children’s position as one of the most active pediatric transplant programs in the nation, per the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network.

“Texas Children’s transplant program is key to our medical and academic success,” said Executive Vice President Mark Mullarkey. “This really differentiates us and I can’t thank you enough for that.”

Transplantation began at Texas Children’s in 1984 with a pediatric heart transplant that was performed by Dr. O.H. “Bud” Frazier. Since that time, liver, kidney and lung have been added and countless lives have been saved. Just last year, 86 organ transplants were performed at Texas Children’s – 32 kidney transplants, 25 heart transplants, 21 liver transplants and 8 lung transplants.

The Transplant Team’s 1,500th transplant occurred on May 21 when 17-year-old Joseph McCullough received a new liver, giving him a chance at a new life after battling primary sclerosing cholangitis, a life-threatening disease that causes end-stage liver disease. McCullough was at last month’s celebration and thanked everyone in the crowd.

“When I was little, I loved Super Heroes. Today, I know who the real Super Heroes are and that’s you,” McCullough said. “I am honored to be up here to say thank you and that transplantation is a beautiful process.”

Other transplant recipients in the audience were Amelia Hicks and Carson Kainer. Amelia received a heart transplant when she was an infant. She is now a thriving kindergartener. Kainer received a kidney transplant at Texas Children’s as a young adult and became the first professional baseball player to play after an organ transplant.

“I got to live out my dream after my transplant because of you here today,” Kainer said. “Thank you so much for what you’ve done, what you do today and the lives you will impact in the future.”

When Dr. John Goss, medical director of Transplant Services and surgical director of the Liver Transplant Program at Texas Children’s, took the podium, he thanked all of the donors who make the transplant process possible and his team for making stupendous strides in a complex field.

“I want you to understand how special you are,” Goss said. “We do a lot of very complex procedures here and we’ve gone from doing about 20 a year to around 100 and I foresee us doing even more in the future.”

For more information about Texas Children’s Transplant Services, click here. To register to become an organ donor, click here.

For our 5th annual Help Kids be Kids online fundraiser we are raising funds to help support and enhance our Therapy Dog Program!

Our patients’ faces light up when Elsa walks through the halls. She is incredibly gentle and affectionate whether she’s helping a patient deal with a long-term illness, cope with chronic pain or get through physical therapy.

Elsa is in high demand. There are more patients who would benefit from spending time with her, but she only has so many hours in the day. This campaign will support Therapy Dog Program and help us get closer to giving her a four-legged brother or sister in the future!

Here’s how employees can help:

  • Share on Facebook and Twitter. Let your friends and family know that they can join you and help make sure our Therapy Dog Program can continue to grow!
  • Support this program by making a donation. Consider making a donation yourself to enhance the Therapy Dog Program: texaschildrens.org/puppylove.

Together we can make a difference for our patients!

Texas Children’s Hospital’s Kidney Stone Clinic has expanded to Texas Children’s Hospital West Campus.

In addition to once monthly clinics at Main Campus in the Medical Center, patients can now access multi-disciplinary stone treatment at West Campus on the first Wednesday of each month.

During each visit, patients and families will meet with a urologist, a nephrologist, and a dietitian to better understand what’s causing the stones and how to manage or prevent them.

To make an appointment, simply place a referral order in Epic or contact Central Scheduling at ext. 2-2778.

July 5, 2017

It’s time to get active with the Houston Texans! Running of the Bulls 5K Run and Walk presented by H-E-B and TORO’s Kids 1K presented by Texas Children’s Hospital are back for 2017, and special early bird pricing is available now!

Early bird pricing ends on Friday, July 7 at 5 p.m., so register NOW to secure the best price available for this year’s event!

When: Sunday, September 17, 2017
Where: NRG Park
What: Competitive 5K Run: $30, Non-competitive 5K Run/Walk: $25, TORO’s Kids 1K: $20

You’ll get the full Texans experience at the Finish Line presented by Mattress Firm by running through the Houston Texans gameday bull tunnel and finishing on the floor of NRG Stadium for our post-race party! The party will feature free food and drinks, live music, giveaways, autographs from Texans celebrities, and more!

To register or for more information, click here.