December 3, 2018

Texas Children’s has received the 2018 “Most Wired” designation for outstanding health care-based technology from Hospitals & Health Network Magazine – the flagship publication of the American Hospital Association.

The annual Most Wired survey polls hospitals and health systems nationwide regarding information technology (IT) initiatives in the areas of infrastructure, business and administrative management, clinical quality and safety, and clinical integration.

The 2018 survey of 647 participants represents 2,190 hospitals – almost 40 percent of all hospitals in the United States. Texas Children’s has earned Most Wired recognition in 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017 and 2018.

“Earning our fifth Most Wired designation reflects the hard work of the Information Services team and our many clinical and operational partners at Texas Children’s,” said Myra Davis, senior vice president of Information Services. “The survey results provide industry-standard benchmarks to measure IT adoption and meaningful use for operational, financial and clinical performance in health care delivery systems.”

Texas Children’s noted several IS achievements, including enhancements to patient safety, patient care and the patient experience. Notable accomplishments include:

Digitally tracking surgical instruments – Information Services helped to implement a digital tracking system for Texas Children’s operating rooms and Sterile Processing Department. Tracking surgical instruments digitally supports patient safety by preventing surgical delays, matching the patient with the correct instrument, prioritizing instruments for high risk cases and identifying obsolete instruments/sets. In addition, it supports continuity of communication (system-wide instrument pool), manages cost of lost instruments, tracks usage for additional sets for replacement or maintenance, enhances employee productivity and meets CMS/CDC/OSHA guidelines.

Improving access to care – Information Services improved the patient experience by removing a couple of issues that occasionally hindered access to care.

  • Patient scheduling process – IS partnered with clinicians, schedulers and the Epic & Revenue Cycle team to generate a questionnaire template to guide scheduling staff when making appointments. The result is a consistent process that improves the patient experience and promotes access to care.
  • How long will I wait? – IS updated the Texas Children’s Urgent Care (TCUC) website to display location wait times. Displaying wait times allows TCUC patients to make an informed decision and potentially save time, improving patient satisfaction. The patient retains some control over the waiting experience, giving them greater flexibility with their time.

Patient transport system intake and dispatch – Information Services upgraded the patient transport system used to document incoming and outgoing transfers. The upgrade optimized the use of tablets in the field, allowing EMS staff to collect data for reporting while providing patient care. In-house, the upgrade enabled Epic integration, supported Windows 10 deployment and brought Texas Children’s into compliance with industry reporting standards.

Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) – Information Services implemented a stringent security protocol throughout Texas Children’s that employs a layered defense to help prevent unauthorized access to organizational assets and patient information. Combining two or more independent credentials, MFA can help protect sensitive personal and health information. Data breaches can result in significant fines with regulators, impact our brand reputation and damage our patients’ trust.

“This designation shows the commitment of Texas Children’s leadership in partnership with Information Services to embrace our transformation as a digitally enabled organization,” said Texas Children’s Chief Medical Information Officer Dr. Carla Giannoni. “Medical care, like other industries, are in evolution in this age of information. The opportunities are endless. Especially exciting to me is that we are now positioned to capitalize on the potential for an integrated communications platform and to develop a data strategy that uses data analytics and machine learning to provide clinical decision support at the bedside.”

A muralist’s vision to transform the concourse of Wallace Tower into a vibrant piece of art has finally come true.

With the help of the Texan-French Alliance for the Arts, the Periwinkle Arts In Medicine Program and an anonymous donor, the concourse is now covered in large colorful paintings of dinosaurs, hearts, unicorns, spaceships, rainbows and more.

“As cars pull up, they’re greeted with this vibrant story that’s almost like a seek-and-find,” said Carol Herron, coordinator of the Periwinkle Arts in Medicine Program. “Can you find the dinosaur? Can you find the ship? It’s just something that’s inviting and really full of life, just like the hospital is.”

Patients with Texas Children’s Cancer and Hematology Centers as well as children who have spent time on Texas Children’s Hospital’s Renal Dialysis Unit created the bulk of the artwork represented in the mural. Pediatric patients from Foundation Lenval Children’s Hospital in Nice, France pitched in too, coming up with the portion of the mural that portrays a globe with a bridge going from Texas to France.

Texan-French Alliance for the Arts Executive and Program Director Karine Parker-Lemoyne and her colleague, Marjon Aucoin, art director for the W.I.D.E. School, organized the collaboration with the patients in Nice and facilitated workshops with patients at Texas Children’s to create the artwork for the mural.

Sebastien Boileau, a French-American muralist with Houston-based Eyeful Art Murals and Designs, then took the art, and with a handful of his fellow muralists, replicated it onto the walls of the Wallace Tower concourse.

“We didn’t put our artistic ego into it,” Boileau said. “We really tried to respect their vision, copying it stroke for stroke, discrepancies and all.”

View the professional and patient artists at work below.

Boileau, who has created some of Houston’s most-famed mural art, said the vision for the project, called “The Door to Hope,” came to him five years ago when he was visiting his friend whose child just had heart surgery. During his visit, he passed through the Wallace Tower concourse, which at the time was a blank canvas.

Being a muralist who likes to decorate large spaces, Boileau said he saw a lot of opportunity and took his idea to the Texan-French Alliance for the Arts. They in turn reached out to Texas Children’s. Once funding was secure, the project was green lighted and completed in just a few months.

During the painting process, Isaac Bogani, the patient Boileau went to visit in the hospital years earlier, joined the artist and helped him replicate a heart he created for the project. The experience was special for both Isaac and Boileau.

“This project is very dear to me,” Boileau said. “I’m really excited about it.”

Both Boileau and the Texan-French Alliance for the Arts have long-standing relationships with Texas Children’s. Boileau painted the mural featured at the playground adjacent to the Abercrombie Building. The Texan-French Alliance for the Arts has worked on various projects with the Periwinkle Arts In Medicine Program at the hospital over the past decade.

“We love working with Texas Children’s,” Parker-Lemoyne said. “This project has been amazing. It really honors the work of the children we worked with and exudes love, wonder and hope.”

The 19th Annual Reba Michels Hill Memorial Grand Rounds were held recently. Awards were given to Neonatology non-physicians who have made a significant contribution to advancing the quality to which Dr. Hill was dedicated: compassionate commitment to education, patient care, research and family.

Dr. Gautham Suresh, chief of service, Neonatology, presents Reba Michels Hill awards to Myrthala Miranda-Guzman, senior administrative assistant, Neonatology Department; Joseph Hagan, research statistician, Neonatology Department; and Sharon Wojtow, advanced respiratory care practitioner, Respiratory Care Department.

Texas Children’s Hospital is excited to welcome Dr. Anna Messner as the new chief of the Division of Otolaryngology.

“Dr. Messner has a strong, clear vision for moving the Division of Otolaryngology to the next level,” said Surgeon-in-Chief Dr. Larry Hollier. “She is prepared to position Texas Children’s Otolaryngology clinics as a premier destination for subspecialty care.”

As chief of Otolaryngology, Messner will helm the largest group of pediatric otolaryngologists in the nation. She brings with her a collaborative, patient-focused approach to care, as well as a strong interest in training the next generation of ENT subspecialists. One of her main areas of focus will be working with each surgeon to help them develop their talents and grow in their professional career.

“Texas Children’s is a world leader in pediatric health care and I am delighted to be joining the team,” said Messner. “My goal for the Division of Otolaryngology is to be the leader in high-quality, efficient care for children with otolaryngology conditions and the premier training program for pediatric ENTs.”

Messner also plans to leverage Texas Children’s high clinical volume to develop and execute innovative new research studies around the care of children with common ENT disorders.

“The dramatic expansion of Texas Children’s Otolaryngology program in recent years creates an opportunity not only to improve patient care, but also to conduct groundbreaking research that can’t be done elsewhere,” Messner said. “We have the potential to become a national research hub that drives how children with these conditions are cared for, both now and in the future.”

Messner comes to Texas Children’s from Stanford University Medical Center, where she served as professor of Otolaryngology and Pediatrics and vice chair of the Department of Otolaryngology. She was also previously the Chief of Pediatric Otolaryngology at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford and program director for the Otolaryngology Residency at Stanford University Medical School.

A nationally recognized leader in Pediatric Otolaryngology, Messner is president-elect of the American Society of Pediatric Otolaryngology (ASPO). She is also a member of the ACGME Otolaryngology Residency Review Committee and has been a guest examiner for the American Board of Otolaryngology Oral Exams.

Messner is a graduate of Wake Forest University School of Medicine, where she also completed her residency and internship. She completed an otolaryngology fellowship at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto.

She will begin her new role on January 14, 2019.

About Otolaryngology at Texas Children’s
Texas Children’s is home to largest pediatric otolaryngology program in the United States, providing advanced surgical and medical care for the entire spectrum of ear, nose, throat, and head and neck diseases and disorders. We are distinguished by wide range of clinical expertise across specialty areas including:

  • Cleft lip and palate
  • Cochlear implantation
  • Complex airway surgery
  • Down syndrome
  • Head and neck surgery
  • Laryngology
  • Microtia and atresia
  • Otology and neurotology
  • Rhinology
  • Sleep medicine
  • Tracheostomy care
  • Vascular anomalies

Our team of surgeons and advanced practice providers offers a comprehensive range of services at all three Texas Children’s Hospital locations, as well as five other Texas Children’s Specialty Care locations in the Houston metropolitan area. We see approximately 40,000 patients in clinic and perform more than 10,000 surgeries each year – and we’re still growing.

Learn more about Texas Children’s Division of Otolaryngology.

November 26, 2018

When the Houston Texans took the field on Monday night, November 26, they were out to win one in honor of a true Houston legend – Texans owner and philanthropist Bob McNair, who passed away on November 23 at the age of 81.

“I was proud to call Bob my friend, and he was such an important part of the Texas Children’s family,” said President and CEO Mark Wallace. “Because of his generous support, Texas Children’s has become one of the preeminent destinations in the world for pediatric health care and women’s services. All of us at Texas Children’s are sending positive thoughts and uplifting prayers to the entire McNair family during this difficult time.”

McNair and his wife, Janice, first called Houston home in 1960, just six years after Texas Children’s Hospital opened its doors. Initially unlucky in business, McNair finally found success when he started Cogen Technologies, which went on to become the largest privately owned cogeneration (an efficient form of power generation that produces electricity and heat at the same time) company in the world.

Of course, many will remember McNair as the man who tirelessly championed the cause to bring football back to Houston after the Oilers left in 1996. He was devoted to Texans fans and desperately wanted to bring a championship home for the people of Houston.

The same determination McNair put into building the Texans into a great team he also put into helping make a difference in the lives of others.

For nearly six decades, the McNairs used their resources as a force for positive change in Houston and across the United States. Through The Robert and Janice McNair Foundation, they gave more than half a billion dollars to support education, advance medical research, train future business leaders, and encourage civic engagement. They set up scholarship programs at several universities, including Rice in Houston, that have made it possible for countless young people to attend college and earn their degrees.

Texas Children’s and our academic partner, Baylor College of Medicine, owe so much to McNair’s legacy and generosity.

The McNair Medical Institute has provided crucial funding that has supported the development of several research initiatives, and has also enabled Texas Children’s and Baylor to recruit some of the most brilliant minds in health care and medical research through the McNair Scholar program. And Texas Children’s partnership with the Texans has helped us encourage children throughout Greater Houston to make healthy choices and inspired them through community activities and school events throughout the year, like our upcoming mini PLAY 60 event.

These are just a few examples of the selflessness McNair exhibited on a daily basis. His towering legacy will live on for years to come in Houston, in Texans football and in the care that we provide at Texas Children’s.

November 19, 2018

Over 300 miles away from Texas Children’s Hospital is the Vannie Cook Children’s Clinic. Located in McAllen, Texas, the facility is an extension of Texas Children’s Cancer and Hematology Centers, dedicated solely to pediatric cancer and blood disorders in the Rio Grande Valley.

The clinic opened in 2001, as a joint venture between a local foundation, the Vannie E. Cook Jr. Cancer Foundation, Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s Hospital. Since then, more than 9,500 families have found the care they need right where they need it most – in their own backyard.

“Before we arrived, most of the local children with cancer and blood disorders had to travel several hours to and from San Antonio or Houston for treatment,” said the clinic’s medical director Dr. Juan Carlos Bernini. “This region didn’t have any pediatric cancer facilities, and there were no pediatric oncologists or hematologists regularly practicing close by.”

During the first year of operation, clinic staff expected to see about 100 patients. Instead, they saw more than 400. “It was obvious how critical our presence was, but the community thankfully trusted and bolstered our ability to serve them,” said Bernini.

Comprehensive care

Texas Children’s/Baylor College of Medicine physicians staff the clinic in the only comprehensive pediatric cancer and hematology center in South Texas.

“The clinic has grown from a small group of providers into a top-notch team of physicians, nurses, social workers, clinic technicians and administrative supporters, all committed to delivering the newest and most advanced therapies to our young patients,” Bernini said. “Our commitment to the patient and family starts at diagnosis and continues throughout treatment and beyond. Most importantly, we’re able to forge exciting paths for long-term survivorship with our patients every day.”

The outpatient clinic is comprised of over 10,000 square feet of space with two waiting rooms, seven exam rooms, two procedure rooms, two phlebotomy stations, two laboratories and a large infusion suite divided into areas for toddlers, young children and adolescents, respectively.

In addition to offering diagnostic and cancer treatment services, the clinic offers a long term survivor program which follows childhood cancer survivors through adulthood, and a research program that offers participation in epidemiology studies and clinical trials.

As a member of the Children’s Oncology Group (COG), we are able to provide local children with critical access to clinical trials. This is particularly important since a large portion of the population that we treat is Hispanic, a population that is generally under-represented in clinical trials.

Still growing

Leaders with the Vannie Cook Children’s Clinic and its partners are always evaluating the services provided at the clinic and are constantly striving to deliver the best care possible to the children served in the Rio Grande Valley.

Dr. David Poplack, associate director of the Cancer and Hematology Centers and director of Global HOPE, helped pave the way for the partnership between Texas Children’s and the Vannie Cook Foundation. He has always said that supporting the clinic was and continues to be the right thing to do.

“At Texas Children’s we believe our responsibility to care for children doesn’t begin and end with those who are able to come to us for help,” Poplack said. “We have an obligation to identify and address critical gaps in coverage whether they are near or far.”

After the grand opening over two months ago, Texas Children’s 12th urgent care clinic, the second of which is located near a Texas Children’s Emergency Center has exceeded expectations.

“We are thrilled with the strong start our West Campus Urgent Care has had so far,” Director of Business Operations for the Urgent Care, Roula Smith said. “It definitely reaffirms that this was the right decision for our patients, as we provide the right care, at the right place, at the right time, at the right cost.”

On September 11, located next to the Texas Children’s Hospital West Campus Emergency Center, the clinic opened to help manage the Emergency Center’s low-acuity patient population and to serve patients and families in the West Houston area.

From opening through the end of October, the clinic has seen nearly 3,000 patients. Approximately one third of the patients are Texas Children’s Health Plan (TCHP) members. This helps TCHP members have access to the same high quality care but in a more cost effective environment. More than half of the patients seen at Texas Children’s Urgent Care West Campus have been self-select patients, who are not presenting via the Emergency Center but arrive to the clinic voluntarily.

This collaboration with the Emergency Center offers a quicker and less expensive option for low-acuity patients. The number of patients that leave the Emergency Center without being seen has been reduced by 80 percent during operating hours.

“In addition to being a win for our patients, it is a win for the Texas Children’s system as a whole,” Smith said. “We know that our colleagues in the Emergency Center are able to take care of higher acuity patients and our TCHP members are receiving care in the right environment for their needs.”

Prior to the clinic opening, the “Save My Spot” feature launched which allows patient families to reserve a time slot at the clinic from the comfort of their own home. This feature is live and wait times are also posted on the website so families know how long it will be before they are seen. Nearly 200 families have used this feature so far and the average cycle time for clinic visits is approximately an hour.

“Urgent care has been the perfect addition to the West Campus,” Assistant Vice President at West Campus Sara Montenegro said. “We have the full spectrum of care available – primary care, specialty care, urgent care, emergent care, surgery, and inpatient care, available in close proximity to each other now, and we are seeing very strong patient arrivals in our Urgent Care & Emergency Center, with this new addition. We knew this was a need in the community, and it is exceeding expectations!”

For more information about Texas Children’s Urgent Care and its locations, click here.