January 27, 2020

On November 9, nearly 100 people gathered at the Meyer Building for Texas Children’s Microtia Awareness Day Celebration, sponsored by the Division of Otolaryngology’s Microtia Clinic.

The event featured educational talks and Q&A sessions offered by experts across numerous Texas Children’s specialties and subspecialties, including Pediatric Otolaryngology, Plastic Surgery, Speech and Language Pathology, Audiology, Anaplastology and a patient experience testimonial. There also was a full slate of games and activities for children, such as pottery painting, face painting, a bean bag toss, Hula-Hooping and mini bowling.

For patients and families alike, it was a wonderful opportunity to meet with members of the multidisciplinary care team in Texas Children’s Microtia and Atresia Program and to interact with other families who have been affected by these rare conditions.

Microtia is a rare congenital malformation of the ear, occurring in about one in 10,000 births. Typically, the condition affects only one ear and the severity of symptoms can vary widely. In less severe cases, the ear might be slightly smaller than normal. However, in the most severe cases, the ear may be completely absent. Because the external and internal structures of the ear are so developmentally linked, children with microtia may also experience atresia – an absence or underdevelopment of the ear canal and middle ear structures. Atresia can potentially cause hearing loss and speech difficulties, which can in turn contribute to poor academic performance.

The effects of these conditions on physical appearance and on speech, hearing and learning, especially during crucial early developmental years, could potentially have a lasting negative impact on self-esteem and overall quality of life.

To meet the complex needs of patients with microtia and atresia, Texas Children’s has built the only comprehensive program in the state that offers the full spectrum of care, from reconstruction of the outer ear, to complex repair of aural atresia, to hearing aids or implants for appropriate candidates.

“With our program, we have created a one-stop shop where families have access to care for children of all ages – and our demand is high,” said Dr. Rodrigo Silva, director of Texas Children’s Ear and Hearing Center. “These conditions may be rare, but because of Houston’s size and diversity we see a very large number of patients each year.”

The Microtia and Atresia Program offers families a multidisciplinary approach to care that includes audiology, with experts trained in age-appropriate hearing testing and solutions; speech and language pathology; and surgical interventions to address cosmetic needs and hearing loss. The event gave Texas Children’s caregivers an opportunity to share the many ways we can help.

“We wanted to highlight our capabilities and let families know that we offer individualized treatment paths for each child we see,” said Dr. Yi-Chun Liu, Texas Children’s pediatric otolaryngologist and associate program director for the Microtia and Atresia Program. “Whether the child needs a reconstruction surgery of the ear or ear canal, a hearing aid or implant, speech and language therapy, or some combination of all of these, we’re committed to providing them with the best possible care.”

At the end of the event, parents were given survey cards that asked for suggestions about the kinds of information regarding microtia and atresia that families might find most helpful when starting their care journey. There was also a section for feedback and comments.

Judging by some of the responses, the event was a success.

  • “The wealth of knowledge was amazing.”
  • “Loved that multiple options were discussed and the importance of team partnerships.”
  • “This is our second year, we will continue to come every year.”

“We’ve already had requests to make it an annual event,” said Jessie Marcet-Gonzalez, Microtia Day celebration coordinator with the Division of Otolaryngology. “We had so many volunteers who helped make this day special for our families and in letting them know that we really care.”

One patient who made the day particularly special was Liliana Montano. The 13-year-old raised the funds to make the awesome red shirts everyone was wearing at the event. Liliana donated the shirts to all attendees.

Learn more about Texas Children’s Microtia and Atresia Program by clicking here.

Texas Children’s Cancer and Hematology Centers recently honored six team members with the Bravo Award for going above and beyond to ensure our patients and families receive the best possible care.

The award is handed out quarterly and recognizes nurses and other professional staff in the Cancer and Hematology Centers for outstanding performance. Anyone within the Texas Children’s system may nominate a member of the cancer and hematology teams for this award. The team’s clinic leadership will select the winners.

Last quarter’s winners of the Bravo Award were:

Amelia Fleming, a bone marrow transplant consult nurse, plays a vital role in patient care and the education of nursing staff. She is flexible with her schedule to accommodate the needs of patients and provides invaluable continuity for them. She even stays late or comes in on off days (including Sundays) to facilitate cellular infusions.

Jane Head, a 9 West Tower care management nurse, is indispensable in coordinating care needs for inpatients. She is patient, kind and a great communicator who moves mountains to obtain care needed to facilitate patient discharges to anywhere in the world. She also assists new fellows and faculty to learn our system and serves as a liaison to other unit care managers.

Jessica Hernandez, a medical assistant at the Main Campus Clinic, is an outstanding example of teamwork who is always willing to help where needed with a smile on her face. She strives to find out answers to any questions and has a great pulse for everything going on in the clinic on a daily basis. She was specifically praised for putting families at ease by telling them of the virtues of her co-workers. She actively seeks out ways to make clinic flow better.

Melissa Lopez, a nurse at The Woodlands Clinic, goes to great lengths to help families navigate the healthcare and insurance systems. She specifically spent hours helping a patient, whose insurance had changed, find a surgeon who could remove his port-a-cath. She also is a leader in working with charitable organizations on behalf of patients and recently helped start a bereavement group for The Woodlands families.

Leslie Paredes, a social worker with bone marrow transplant, is dedicated, responsible and takes action to ensure the needs of her patients are met in a timely manner. When a patient recently passed away, she ensured the family was flown home in time to make funeral arrangements according to their cultural needs. She is a role model for her co-workers and an example of how we should all care for our patients, families and one another.

Paulette Reed, an administrator at the Main Campus Clinic, is an extraordinary individual who ensures the smooth flow of the share desk, appointments and room assignments in clinic. Her interactions with complicated patients are a model for all in diplomatic problem solving. She is the “go-to” person for scheduling needs and can always find a way to have a patient seen on a non-scheduled clinic day.

On January 23, The Rise School of Houston hosted their 20th anniversary celebration, highlighting its growth and success in the past two decades. The Rise School of Houston is a pre-school for children with and without disabilities from six months to six years of age, and a non-profit organization and affiliate of Texas Children’s Hospital.

The celebration began in a covered area just outside of the school with a mixer that allowed donors, past and present school faculty and staff, and many others to mingle and meet one another. Shortly after, a program ensued that included speakers who have been an integral part of the school. A member of the Board of Trustees started with a welcome, and the senior pastor of St. Luke’s United Methodist Church followed with a passionate prayer. The celebration was filled with emotional moments as it fell on the heels of the passing of The Rise School founder, John Duncan.

Emily Duncan, the granddaughter of John and Brenda Duncan, later approached the podium to speak about the history behind the creation of The Rise School. After learning that their grandson was born with Down Syndrome, the Duncans worked hard to research and develop an early intervention and therapy facility and in 1997 the Rise School of Dallas was born.

The late John Duncan knew he wanted to open another location in Houston and at his 71st birthday party, many of his close friends surprised him with a gift of $1,000,001 to open a Rise School in Houston. Our President and CEO Mark A. Wallace then agreed to lease space for $1 a year and on January 20, 2000, the school opened with 17 students. Today, the school has a capacity to hold 100 students and a wait list that holds 75.

“We will not be where were are without Texas Children’s and Mark Wallace,” Emily Duncan said before introducing Wallace. “We lean on our partnership to continue, so thank you from the bottom of my heart and my grandparents.”

Texas Children’s Hospital provides the school’s occupational, physical and speech therapists; a music therapist, language specialist and nurse also are on staff.

“Wow, 20 years, what an incredible milestone,” Wallace said as he began his speech during the program. “As we all know this place is truly special. It’s a bright light in our community and Texas Children’s is so proud to be a part of the school ever since its inception”

He went on to describe with friendship with Duncan and how the Rise School and Texas Children’s partnership began.

The program closed with an original song by the school’s music therapist, and following the program everyone was invited inside of the school for a tour of the facility, refreshments and a special performance by the children of The Rise School.

The Rise School of Houston is the only school of its kind in the greater Houston area. It is also one of 9 percent of pre-schools in the United States to be accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

Click here for more information about The Rise School of Houston.

January 26, 2020

A new system will soon allow Texas Children’s Health Plan to better integrate data for an improved member and provider experience.

Epic Tapestry, a module within Epic health care management, will help make this possible by first providing better information and improved work processes for employees who treat our more than 400,000 customers.

With the launch of Epic Tapestry – set for February 1, 2021 – employees who must now use up to ten systems to do their job, will be able to use just one or two. They will have access to more information, need to ask fewer questions and will be better prepared to offer comprehensive service.

“This is going to be very exciting for our workforce, allowing us to be much more efficient in our processes and therefore better able to meet the needs of our members,” said Justin Loudon, assistant vice president at Texas Children’s Health Plan. “The promise for Epic’s impact is enormous and we are enthusiastic about what this means for our future.”

The Benefits of Epic Tapestry

Epic Tapestry is an overarching application that will replace a variety of applications currently used. Its goal is to integrate the business of Texas Children’s Health Plan. It will:

  • Ensure a comprehensive, integrated enterprise solution with a common look and feel
  • Reduce manual work and provide a better data source for information
  • Incorporate evidence-based decision-support tools and better data entry at point of care
  • Optimize the patient/family experience across the enterprise
  • Challenge current practice—streamline and simplify

Reinforcing One Amazing Team

Project leaders also note that the current applications used at Texas Children’s Health Plan have no integration or communication with applications used at Texas Children’s Hospital.

“This is something that has to change,” said John Turner, assistant vice president at The Health Plan. “Thousands of Health Plan members are also Texas Children’s Hospital or Texas Children’s Pediatrics patients. Many of our providers also work within both worlds. Introducing Epic at The Health Plan will ensure that all systems can talk to one another.”

Texas Children’s Hospital implemented Epic in 2008 and now it’s The Health Plan’s turn.

Money Saved = Increased Member Care

Loudon added that this implementation is also a cost savings measure as The Health Plan spends over $7 million each year on maintenance and hosting for all of its many applications. This annual cost will be significantly less once those applications are replaced by Epic.

Applications to be replaced include QNXT, Vital, Impact Pro, Maccess, Formworks, Harmony/WellSky, Member Portal, Provider Portal, MicroDyn and Altegra. Once full implementation takes place, only Epic and Onbase will be in use.

Employees will be trained for the change

All essential groups will be trained beginning in October of this year. Watch Connect for a separate story on training details.

Want to know more?

All employees, providers and members who are affected will receive targeted communications from a variety of sources, including: managers, supervisors and corporate communications.

Are you following the Texas Children’s employee Instagram page? Well, you should be! You or your co-workers could be featured on @oneamazingteam any day of the week.

This page offers a way to stay informed and connected to everything that takes place within the Texas Children’s family. And the best part is that you never know who will be featured each week to celebrate their contribution to our team. So stop what you’re doing right now and follow @oneamazingteam on Instagram.

January 22, 2020

Texas Children’s helped push almost 200 runners across the finish line of the Houston Marathon and Half Marathon January 19 in front of the George R. Brown Convention Center. As part of the Texas Children’s Running Team, the runners signed up for the 26.2 mile or 13.1 mile race not only to hit the pavement but to raise money for a good cause – Texas Children’s.

The team – comprised of Texas Children’s employees, patient family members and corporate teams – raised $65,459 for the organization. Two corporate teams ran in support of Texas Children’s. Team Bechtel, which was comprised of over 80 runners, raised more than $45,000, the most of all the running teams in the Run for a Reason program. W-Industries, with over 45 runners, sponsored the Texas Children’s tent along the race route. Overall, Texas Children’s raised the third largest amount of funds compared with 100 plus other running teams participating in the race. View photos from the race below.

This is the fifth year Texas Children’s Hospital has been an official charity for the Houston Marathon and Armaco Half Marathon Run for a Reason program, giving people a way to participate in the race of their choice with a guaranteed entry – on behalf of a charity.

This was the second year Texas Children’s Hospital had the privilege of being the co-presenting sponsor of the Houston Marathon Health & Fitness EXPO alongside Houston Methodist. Held prior to Chevron Houston Marathon and Aramco Houston Half Marathon, the EXPO was attended by race participants and others are invited to come to interact with other runners and make purchases from a variety of vendors. View photos from the event below.

Texas Children’s Hospital will be the co-presenting sponsor of the Houston Marathon Health & Fitness EXPO next year and is an official 2021 Charity and registrations for next year are open. Runners who commit to fundraise $750 for Texas Children’s Hospital will have their registration fee waived and will receive guaranteed entry for the Full or Half Marathon. Runners, or walkers, also can participate as a Hero Runner, making a one-time tax-deductible donation of at least $350, plus the cost of registration. To learn more and register to run for Texas Children’s in 2021, click here. In addition, members of the Employee Health & Wellness team will be hosting workshops for Texas Children’s employees participating in Run for a Reason to help them prepare and train for the half or full marathon. More information will be available soon.

EXPO

Runners

January 21, 2020

The arrival of a new year is an ideal opportunity to refresh and refocus on achieving our professional and personal goals. If improving yourself in mind, body and spirit is among your resolutions for 2020, Employee Health and Well-Being is here to support you on your journey.

Resolution: Start a new health and fitness routine.
Amplify unity with your co-workers by taking a group fitness class. Take a look at the new schedule on Connect, which includes on-site classes available at the Well-Being Studio, Health Plan, West Campus and The Woodlands. All Texas Children’s employees, and Baylor employees who work at Texas Children’s locations, can participate in any class at any location, at no cost. If you live or work outside of Houston, please remember that you are eligible to receive reduced monthly membership rates, waived enrollment fees and discounted services from our well-being partners, including ClassPass, WW (Weight Watchers) and more.

Resolution: Practice self-care.
Take advantage of EAP Plus, the enhanced Employee Assistance Program available to all employees and eligible dependents. In addition to round-the-clock access to counseling services by phone, and referrals to qualified mental health providers in the community, EAP Plus provides legal guidance, financial information and unlimited work-life solutions to help you take care of tasks like planning a party, securing child or elder care, arranging home repairs and more. Call 833.EAP.PLUS 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to connect with a certified counselor, or visit the program online and enter EAPPLUS as the Organization ID.

Resolution: Be more intentional about taking care of your overall health.
Now is a good time to schedule an annual physical with your health care provider. Texas Children’s Employee Medical Clinic provides full-service primary care that includes annual physicals and the well-being physical, which offers a more in-depth and comprehensive approach to understanding your key health numbers. Click here to view Employee Medical Clinic locations and hours of operation, and call 832-824-2424 to make an appointment.

As you set your sights on becoming a healthier and stronger you in the New Year, your Employee Health and Well-Being team is here to empower you every step of the way. Together, let’s make it a great year.