June 14, 2022

In yet another monumental achievement made possible through the hard work of our One Amazing Team and your commitment to every child and family we serve, Texas Children’s has earned recognition from U.S. News & World Report as the #2 children’s hospital in the country.

In addition to Texas Children’s historic rise to #2 in the overall list, the 2022-23 U.S. News & World Report Best Children’s Hospital survey included Top 10 spots for every subspecialty:

  • #1 in Cardiology & Heart Surgery, in a testament to the cutting-edge treatments and family-centered care provided by the Heart Center for more than 60 years
  • #1 in Pulmonology
  • #2 in Neurology & Neurosurgery
  • #3 in Nephrology (kidney disorders)
  • #3 in Neonatology
  • #4 in Cancer
  • #4 in Gastroenterology & GI Surgery
  • #5 in Diabetes & Endocrinology
  • #5 in Urology
  • #8 in Orthopedics

Texas Children’s is also ranked as the #1 children’s hospital in Texas and #1 in the Southwest Region – rounding out the national honors in what President and CEO Mark A. Wallace called a “pivotal moment that reflected everything we’ve accomplished together this year.”

“These tremendous outcomes are the result of the steadfast leadership, unwavering dedication and sincere passion you have for Texas Children’s mission,” Wallace wrote in announcing the exciting news to the organization. “Our eight in-chiefs, our five executive vice presidents, our medical and administrative leaders, and our faculty and staff are without a doubt the greatest teams in our organization’s history.”

Reaching the top of the list

U.S. News & World Report introduced the Best Children’s Hospitals ranking in 2007 to help families of children with rare or life-threatening illnesses find the best medical care available. The rankings are the most comprehensive source of quality-related information on U.S. pediatric hospitals.

They rely on clinical data from nearly 200 medical centers through a detailed survey that analyzes measures, such as patient safety, infection prevention and adequacy of nurse staffing. In addition, each hospital’s score is derived from surveys of more than 15,000 pediatric specialists who are asked where they would send the sickest children in their specialty.

In 2021, only 89 children’s hospitals were ranked in at least one of the 10 pediatric specialties evaluated for the annual report. Ten hospitals ranked at the top of their class and were named to the 2022-2023 Honor Roll. For more information, visit usnews.com/childrenshospitals.

“Consistent collaboration, newfound discoveries and extraordinary patient care is what has brought us to where we are today. But we all know that for Texas Children’s, this is only the beginning of our bright future ahead,” Wallace said. “Let’s cherish and celebrate this moment – and then let’s gear up to climb even higher. I have no doubt that with this team, everything is possible!”

To read the full news release announcing Texas Children’s latest rankings from U.S. News & World Report, click here.

June 7, 2022

PCM Kiersten Betker shares her rewarding experience at the recent PCM Summit. Read More

Watch what motivates Matthew towards a better Tomorrow, Together as a leader for his team and for himself in this week’s One Amazing Team Spotlight. More

After advocating for her brother’s care while she was just a child, Alma Martinez now works to give all patients and families a voice. Read More

June 1, 2022
Dr. Huda Zoghbi with Dr. Harry T. Orr, her long-time collaborator

Pioneering neurologist and Texas Children’s Research-in-Chief Dr. Huda Zoghbi has been awarded the prestigious 2022 Kavli Prize for neuroscience, making history as the first Kavli Prize recipient for both Texas Children’s and the Baylor College of Medicine.

The Kavli Prize is a partnership among the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, the Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research and the Kavli Foundation to recognize scientists in astrophysics, nanoscience and neuroscience for breakthroughs that transform our understanding of the big, the small and the complex.

Zoghbi is one of just 11 scientists from around the world to be named a Kavli Prize Laureate this year, in recognition of two groundbreaking discoveries.

The first discovery came with long-time collaborator and University of Minnesota professor Dr. Harry T. Orr, who also received the Kavli Prize. Together, Zoghbi and Orr independently discovered the gene known as ATAXIN1, which is responsible for spinocerebellar ataxia 1 (SCA1). SCA1 is a progressive and often deadly disease in which neurons in the cerebellum and brain stem degenerate, causing loss of balance and coordination as well as swallowing difficulties.

Zoghbi’s second discovery was of the MECP2 gene responsible for Rett syndrome, a developmental disorder that strikes children, mostly girls, causing regression and disability.

“I am deeply honored by this recognition and credit my mentors, trainees, collaborators, and the incredible research environment at Baylor and Texas Children’s Hospital in helping me advance the work on SCA1 and Rett syndrome,” said Zoghbi, who is also the founding director of Texas Children’s Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, a Distinguished Service Professor at Baylor and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator.

“To be acknowledged alongside Harry Orr, Jean-Louis Mandel and Chris Walsh is especially meaningful as it is beautiful recognition of the power of genetics for understanding disease,” she said.

Zoghbi joined Texas Children’s and Baylor in 1983 as a resident in child neurology. After encountering two patients with Rett syndrome and identifying other children with similar symptoms, she was inspired to go into research to uncover what caused the disorder.

While treating Rett syndrome, Zoghbi took note of spinocerebellar ataxia and her research with impacted families led her to Orr – who was also working with families affected by spinocerebellar ataxia. The pair shared techniques from their respective work and discovered the disease-causing gene ATAXIN1 in April 1993.

In 1999, Zoghbi and her research team were able to identify mutations in methyl-CpG-binding protein 2 gene, known as MECP2, as the root cause for Rett syndrome. The discovery of the Rett syndrome gene provided a straightforward diagnostic genetic test, allowing early and accurate diagnosis of the syndrome.

“From the moment Dr. Zoghbi arrived at Texas Children’s Hospital, we knew immediately that she was essential to unlocking the mystery of these devastating diseases,” said President and CEO Mark A. Wallace. “Dr. Zoghbi continues to amaze us with her commitment to not only understanding what causes neurological diseases but also her dedication to lead the discovery and development of new treatments that will undeniably transform the landscape of neurological research and, ultimately, change lives for generations to come.”

For more on Zoghbi, her work and the 2022 Kavli Prize honor, click here.

The Front Door for Data and Technology (Front Door) has undergone a major transformation to meet users’ growing demand for data and create a more robust data exploration experience. You’re going to want to bookmark the new Front Door, located on Connect – navigation bar – Tools. The new portal was officially launched on May 25 by the Quality Outcomes & Analytics, Clinical Informatics, and Information Services (IS) teams.

The Front Door was formed in 2017 to serve as Texas Children’s portal for requesting data reports, access to existing reports and dashboards, E-changes (Epic optimizations and other clinical technologies), and computer technology (tools, software and help). In an increasingly data-driven world and organization, a greater demand for data and more desire from users to learn about and use self-service tools drove the need to reimagine the Front Door user experience.

“We formed a partnership six months ago and set out to understand users’ data consumption needs and modify Front Door in a way that will help people help themselves when it comes to data research, reports, technology requests and understanding clinical technologies,” said Dr. Carla Giannoni, Chief Medical Information Officer and Professor, Pediatric Otolaryngology.

The Front Door transformation team includes Dr. Giannoni, Toni Powell-Fontenot, Assistant Director of Quality Outcomes & Analytics, and Ashok Kurian, IS Director of Enterprise Systems.

Among their findings, the team learned that many users are seeking self-service education about nearly everything, including available reports, the components of those reports, and Epic features and functionality. Their main goal for the new site was to create a space to serve all informatics needs, where users can easily find guidance, facts and forms. Each page includes user-friendly summaries, how-to guidance and quick links that will take you where you need to go to get your work done. On Front Door you can:

  • access request forms for technology and data reports
  • learn about the data request process, all self-service data tools available to you, and how to create robust data requests based on your unique research and reporting needs
  • get links to a vast array of credible and valuable external education resources
Tips for navigating Front Door

When you enter Front Door you will get a taste for how the rest of the site works. Quick link icons connect you with the most-used tools and information, such as How to Get Your Own Data, the IS Request Center, and E-Change Request Form. FAQs are available for everything the team could think of to help you connect with the data and tools you need including request status, determining the type of request you need, and learning more about Epic clinical and data features. The Epic Video Library covers everything Epic, ranging from how to use Epic features such as SlicerDicer and Reporting Workbench to help with physician efficiencies such as writing notes. The Epic “It’s Possible” series are 60- to 90-second videos addressing how to work efficiently.

Quick links for common items are cross-referenced throughout the site. For example, you can always build your own unique dashboard or report based on your team’s needs, although “Data, Tools and Access” shows you what type of reports, dashboards and data sources are already available, and allows you to filter them by type, self-service access request required, source, and other helpful information. If you are contemplating whether to “build” or “request” a report that reveals several clinical data points, you might want to review “Thinking About Data: Tools and Access” for guidance. Other helpful quick links include HELP for the IS Service Portal and Quality and Safety Home.

“We appreciate everyone’s patience as we worked with Ashok’s team to migrate from the initial Front Door and construct and launch the new site,” said Fontenot. “We are excited about its functionality and potential, and we encourage you to take a spin, dive in and give us feedback.”

The Front Door will evolve as the team learns of more reports and tools that can help leadership and work teams with insight and forecasting, such as Epic Executive Dashboards.

Welcome in! Reach out to Toni Fontenot or Dr. Carla Giannoni if you have any questions about the new Front Door.

What to read, listen to, watch, try and know this month on Texas Children’s journey to a more diverse, equitable and inclusive culture. Read More