August 26, 2024

The Texas Children’s Summer Junior Program once again presented a prime opportunity for Houston teens to learn about the health care industry at the biggest children’s hospital in the country. The Volunteer Services department hosts the program designed to provide high school students (ages 15-17) with an opportunity to volunteer at various campuses. 

As early as 1955, Junior Volunteers at the Medical Center have supported patients, families and staff through a variety of volunteer assignments and interactive engagements. The tradition continued this year as over 300 prospects submitted applications for the Medical Center, which resulted in 43 summer juniors accepted into the six-week session. These students represented 25 schools across the Greater Houston area and proved to be a very impressive group that left a lasting impact. West Campus also welcomed 19 junior volunteers representing 12 schools and The Woodlands had 12 juniors from nine schools. 

“It’s amazing to see the continued interest in this program, not only from the students but also from our team members who want to help them learn,” said Aileen Rago, assistant director of Patient & Family Services. “We received overwhelming positive feedback again from this year’s participants. They made long-lasting connections with mentors and learned across many disciplines in the hospital. We want to thank everyone involved in the program for taking their valuable time to teach these students.”

Texas Children’s team members worked in two, three-hour shifts Monday-Thursday with the students. Some of the most popular placements across campuses were the playroom, fun cart, crafts in the lobby, slant room, MWT PACU, Supply Chain, snow cone cart, outpatient playrooms and Guest Services. There were also Lunch and Learns with guest speakers from Social Work, OT/PT, Patient Experience and a second year Baylor College of Medicine Student who was a summer junior himself years ago. 

Summer Juniors at the Medical Center served a remarkable 5,168 hours this summer. Those in The Woodlands served 1,596 hours and West Campus Juniors completed 2,566 hours. 

If you are interested in sharing your career journey with our teens next summer, please email us at volunteerservices@texaschildrens.org.

 

Texas Children’s Hospital is proud to celebrate the 10th anniversary of a novel treatment: the laparotomy-assisted, two-port fetoscopic closure of a neural tube defect (NTD) to treat spina bifida. This procedure, pioneered by Drs. Michael A. Belfort, Obstetrician and Gynecologist-in-Chief, and William E. Whitehead, pediatric neurosurgeon, offers the potential for improved outcomes for the baby compared to traditional open repair while also being substantially less invasive for the mother.

“This milestone validates that we are a mature program, that we have done a lot of these cases, and that our results are equivalent to, if not better than, anyone else out there doing this,” said Dr. Belfort. “We pride ourselves on offering our patients and families the highest levels of quality, safety and outcome.”

Texas Children’s was the first institution in the world to show that NTDs can be safely and effectively closed fetoscopically using a two-port approach, and it is still one of just a few centers in the country (and world) that offer this type of repair. This procedure has been successfully performed by our multidisciplinary team in over 200 mothers, with an average gestational age at birth of 36-37 weeks.

This procedure was developed by Texas Children’s Fetal Center, in partnership with Texas Children’s Division of Neurosurgery. “The multidisciplinary collaboration with the Fetal Center on this surgical effort is an extraordinary example of the innovative spirit at Texas Children’s Hospital,” said Dr. Whitehead.

Over the past 10 years, Dr. Belfort and his team have trained other fetal surgeons and helped open a number of fetal centers throughout the United States and across the world to develop their spina bifida repair program, enabling a safer approach to fetal surgery and ensuring a healthier, happier future for families across the globe.

Click here to read more.

Did you know the Texas Children’s Milk Bank is a state-of-the-art collection, labeling, refrigeration and dispensing center and one of only a few facilities of its kind in Houston? Dosing close to 500,000 human milk feedings every year with over 55,000 patient encounters, they serve some of our tiniest and most critical patients.

With a primary focus on storing milk for mothers expressing for their hospitalized infants, the Milk Bank creates a safe and well-maintained place for families to store milk for their babies, helping to eliminate one added stressor from an already challenging situation.

In addition to storing up to 20,000 containers of breast milk, the Milk Bank also adapts milk for babies with complex medical needs. Using an infrared spectrometer, technicians can analyze just a few milliliters of mother’s milk. The machine then reads out the fat, carbohydrates, protein and total calories in those drops and the team can make recommendations on which nutrients to add to best meet the needs of infant.

The Milk Bank also utilizes a centrifuge. This machine helps the technicians skim the milk down for babies with special conditions or who have just undergone heart surgery. They can then add the necessary components back, all while allowing the infant to continue a diet of their mother’s milk.

Lactation team helps mothers all over the system

The Lactation team works to support mothers at the Pavilion for Women and anywhere else an infant receiving breast milk may need support. Texas Children’s proudly employs one of the largest teams in the country, available 24/7 in the Medical Center. The team offers both outpatient services and free virtual breastfeeding support groups.

In recognition of National Breastfeeding Awareness Month, the Lactation and Milk Bank teams hosted events across the system including a Pump-a-Thon in the Medical Center NICU, tables with games and prizes and snacks and goodie bags for lactating moms.

The work done by these departments changes of the lives of infants and families at Texas Children’s. Helping mothers breastfeed their babies or fortify their milk to keep their infants on a breastmilk diet can make a lifechanging difference. Thank you to all our certified lactation specialists, nurses and Milk Bank technicians!

 

Melissa Cashin, MSN, RN, NPD-BC, CHSE has a passion for using her knowledge and skills to help team members perform their jobs more efficiently. Her work in the Simulation Center prepares others for potential situations so they can tackle them with ease. Her “can-do” attitude and encouraging spirit are only a few reasons we are glad she is part of Texas Children’s!

What makes you happiest about being part of Texas Children’s One Amazing Team?

I have to say that I see some AMAZING things happen here at TCH, and it makes me proud to be a part of this organization. The way we care for children, women and their families is beyond exceptional. And the way we care for each other is extraordinary, in good times and bad. 

What is your favorite part about your job?

I am a Registered Nurse and an Education Specialist. When I help staff perform their jobs “better” and they get it, it makes my heart happy. The best part is I can see it on their face when it occurs. Sometimes, I will see a person outside of the simulation center and they say to me “Melissa, remember that sim we did last week, we had that patient, and we knew what to do.” That is the favorite part of my job!

Give a shoutout to someone at Texas Children’s for making a difference.

I cannot give a shout out to someone. I must applaud everyone here a Texas Children’s. Each person gives a piece of themselves to improve the lives of those in need. Everyone is making a difference!

How do you recharge your batteries away from work?

I love to travel! I travel with friends or family as often as I can. I also love to cook and gather once a month with my Kooking Klub buddies.

Name a fun fact about you that most don’t know.

I love doing puzzles.

August 20, 2024

Texas Children’s is thrilled to announce Dr. Dean B. Andropoulos, Anesthesiologist-in-Chief and Chair of the Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine at Texas Children’s Hospital, has been named the recipient of the Dolly D. Hansen Award for Lifetime Achievement by the Congenital Cardiac Anesthesia Society (CCAS), a section of the Society for Pediatric Anesthesia (SPA).

“I am truly grateful for this honor and humbled by this recognition,” said Dr. Andropoulos. “I’m proud to be a member of the CCAS, and to see how our society has grown over the past 20 years.”

The CCAS Lifetime Achievement Award was designed to acknowledge a lifetime contribution to the society’s mission, which is to improve the perioperative care and outcomes, and facilitate technological advances in therapy for newborns, infants and children with cardiovascular disease, congenital or acquired, and adults with congenital heart disease requiring anesthetic care. As the founding president of CCAS, Dr. Andropoulos has faithfully pursued its mission throughout his career.

“Every single day I get to work with this fantastic group of dedicated physicians, I learn something new,” added Dr. Andropoulos. “I am forever grateful to Texas Children’s Hospital.”

Click here to read more.

August 13, 2024

This summer, 10-year-old Henry Glandon went swimming and dunked his head under the water for the first time. He went to a wilderness camp and zip-lined into a lake. Four months ago, his doctor, Dr. Richard Hopper, moved to Austin to create a craniofacial center at Texas Children’s Hospital – North Austin. He’s bringing many of his team from Seattle to Austin, including a specialized orthodontist. Read more