December 6, 2016

12616retirementbenefits250At Texas Children’s, our employees lead tirelessly every day in service to our patients and our organization. As part of our commitment to your financial well-being, our comprehensive Total Rewards program includes two retirement plans to help you save for your future.

Texas Children’s Pension Plan
We are excited to announce that on approximately Friday, December 9, Texas Children’s will post your 2016 Pension Plan deposit into your account. To see how much your pension plan has grown, log into your account at ibenefitcenter.com. For new users, you can register by clicking on “Get Started” to enter the last four digits of your social security number and your date of birth. On the website, you will also find useful tools to help you view your balance, estimate your future pension plan balance and verify/update your beneficiary information.

This pension plan is designed to provide a foundation for your retirement and is fully funded by Texas Children’s. You are automatically enrolled in the plan on April 1 or October 1 once you reach 21 years of age and have worked 1,000 hours or more during the 12 consecutive months after your initial date of hire.

To learn more about the pension plan, click here to view the summary plan description or call the Texas Children’s Pension Plan Support Team at 800-752-8230 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday central time.

Texas Children’s 403(b) Savings Plan
The 403(b) savings plan provides matching contributions (free money) from Texas Children’s! Texas Children’s matches 50 percent on the first 6 percent of your pre-tax contributions per pay period, to a maximum of $8,100 for 2017, and then you choose how to invest those funds. The more you save, the more Texas Children’s contributes. If you are not already enrolled in the 403(b) savings plan or not contributing at least 6 percent, you should consider doing so now.

You can enroll anytime by contacting Fidelity at 800-343-0860 between 7 a.m. and 11 p.m., Monday through Friday central time or online at fidelity.com/atwork. If you are registering online for the first time, please click on “Register” in the login area to enter the last 4 digits of your social security number and your date of birth. Don’t miss out on this valuable match!

12716transplantinside350Seventeen-year-old Shelby Standridge came down with common colds early in her childhood, but nothing out of the ordinary. A severe nose bleed at age 9, however, landed her in the hospital and prompted questions from her parents about the cause of her unexpected illness.

Doctors in her hometown in Alabama thankfully ruled out leukemia, but did a test for cystic fibrosis, which came back positive. Cystic fibrosis is a genetic disorder that affects mostly the lungs, but also the pancreas, liver, kidneys and intestine.

At the time doctors tested Shelby for the disease, they determined her liver was already fully involved, almost to the point of end-stage liver failure. She wasn’t yet a candidate for transplant, however, so she continued battling the disease over the next five years. Throughout the past couple of years, though, Shelby’s parents and older sister noticed her lung function was declining.

“Her life had become narrow,” Shelby’s mom, Teresa Standridge, recalled.

As a result, Shelby and her family were referred to Texas Children’s, home to one of the largest pediatric transplantation programs in the nation. The team performed 86 solid organ transplants in 2015, making the program the most active pediatric transplant program in the U.S. last year.

Shelby, her mom, and older sister, Olivia, moved to Houston in October so she could be listed for a double lung and a liver transplant. A grueling wait that was expected to last six to eight months, was a mere week as Shelby underwent a 14-hour lung-liver transplant on November 8.

A multidisciplinary team of surgeons performed the procedure which is deemed so uncommon that Texas Children’s has done, including Shelby, only six of these cases since the inception of the transplant program.

“Shelby’s case is quite unusual,” said the teenager’s pulmonologist Dr. Ernestina Melicoff-Portillo. “There are only a small number of cystic fibrosis patients who have both lungs and the liver affected.”

Now, two weeks post-transplant, Shelby is feeling “ten times better” than she did and “can enjoy more in everyday life.” Her dad, Brian Standridge, noted that he hasn’t seen her grin so wide in years.

Dr. John Goss, medical director of Transplant Services, said the expertise of and the collaboration with the clinical staff and the two different surgical teams are what made Shelby’s outcome a success.

“This type of procedure only could happen at a place like Texas Children’s where our transplant program continues to earn its reputation as one of the best pediatric transplant programs in the country,” he said.

Click here to watch KHOU 11 News’ story about Shelby’s dual-organ transplant.

12716tyrisehawkins175Tyrise Hawkins, November 2016 Employee

Tyrise Hawkins of Supply Chain, is the latest Texas Children’s Super Star employee. “My motivation is coming in every morning and seeing the kids I am here to help.” Read more of his interview below and find out how you can nominate a Super Star.
Your name, title and department. How long have you worked here?
Tyrise Hawkins. Supply Chain Tech 3, Supply Chain. 22 years.

What month are you Super Star for?
November 2016

Tell us how you found out you won a super star award.
I thought I was at a department staff meeting until I saw all my coworkers, Leadership and a cake on the table that had Super Star Tyrise Hawkins on it.

What does it mean to be recognized for the hard work you do? How has the organization helped you achieve your personal and professional goals?
It feels good! I still can’t believe I was picked for this award. I just love Texas Children’s Hospital and what I do. My reward is making my customers and families happy. What is needed for my customers when their patients arrive, it has already been delivered to the department. The organization has help me achieve my goals by receiving good coaching from my leadership. Also they always ask for my feedback on issues concerning the Clinical Care Center.

What do you think makes someone at Texas Children’s a super star?
Just be yourself and treat people the way you want to be treated. That is a super star.

What is your motivation for going above and beyond every day at work?
Coming in every morning and seeing the kids I am here to help. When you see some of the parents remember you: They might not know your name, but they never forget your face. Also when they tell you, ‘Every time I come here and see you, you are always happy.’ That motivates me even more.

What is the best thing about working at Texas Children’s?
Everything about Texas Children’s is the best.

What does it mean to you that everyone at Texas Children’s is considered a leader? What is your leadership definition?
You just answered it. Everybody here is a leader, and family. When you are down, there is a coworker, leadership, or someone who is going to say something to pick you up.

Anything else you want to share?
Thank you Texas Children’s for giving me 22 years of service. I will be here for 22 more.

112316lisahollier175Dr. Lisa Hollier has been named president elect of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) for May 2017 to May 2018. Hollier will officially take office on May 9.

With 20 years of experience, Hollier is a board certified professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and director of the Division of Women’s Health Law and Policy at Baylor College of Medicine. She is the chief medical officer for Obstetrics and Gynecology for Texas Children’s Health Plan and the medical director of The Centers for Children and Women.

She received her doctorate in Medicine from Tulane University School of Medicine and master’s degree in Public Health from Tulane University School of Public Health and Topical Medicine. Hollier completed her residency at Baylor University Medical Center and completed a fellowship in maternal-fetal medicine at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas.

As a national expert in obstetrics and gynecology, Hollier’s work has been published in prestigious national journals and she has served on several national boards.

113016drmingshanxuecure175Mingshan Xue, PhD, assistant professor at Baylor College of Medicine and investigator at the Texas Children’s Hospital’s Gordon and Mary Cain Pediatric Neurology Research Foundation Laboratories/Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, has been awarded the 2016 CURE Epilepsy Felix Henry Memorial Award.

Xue’s research is focused on the development of cortical circuits and how any malfunction of these circuits contributes to epileptic encephalopathies. This award is awarded in the honor of Felix Henry who started having seizures as a 3-month-old infant and tragically succumbed to epilepsy as a 7-month-old baby in March 2016. His parents, Jen Scott and Pierre-Gilles Henry, instituted a $250,000 grant to support transformational scientific research programs.

Citizens United for Research in Epilepsy (CURE) is a leading non-governmental agency fully committed to leading and supporting research in epilepsy. It was founded by a group of parents in 1998, and since its inception, has raised more than $40 million to support epilepsy research initiatives.

Click here to learn more about Xue’s research program and his motivations for pursuing this area of investigation.

113016drprakashmasand175Dr. Prakash Masand, director of Cardiac Imaging Service in the Texas Children’s Hospital Department of Radiology has been awarded a Fulbright & Jaworski LLP Faculty Excellence Award from Baylor College of Medicine. He is the first pediatric radiologist at Texas Children’s to receive this award.

To be considered for an award in Teaching and Evaluation, a member of the Baylor faculty must show evidence of quality of teaching, number of teaching hours and diversity in content of material, and variety of teaching formats among medical students, residents and fellows.

“One of the most valuable assets of any academic medical center is a great teacher,” said Texas Children’s Radiologist-in-Chief George S. Bisset. “Dr. Masand understands the power of teaching and his commitment has inspired many of our trainees in radiology.”

As a Radiology attending physician since 2010, Masand has contributed to the training and education of numerous residents and fellows who rotate on the Radiology service from Baylor College of Medicine, University of Texas in Houston and the San Antonio military program.

As an educator, Masand inspires residents and fellows by incorporating effective teaching methods to help them discover their true potential. He enjoys teaching while interpreting case studies with trainees and enjoys interactions with his trainees during clinical conferences, didactic and lecture based teaching. Masand is also passionate about optimizing and setting up imaging protocols and sequences, which eventually helps with standardization of imaging based algorithms, and provides him with the unique opportunity to participate in the education of our Radiology staff, including nurses, technologists and sonographers.

“My collaboration with residents, fellows and faculty from other clinical specialties has continually enhanced my learning and I am happy to say that we have developed several successful clinical programs using a multidisciplinary approach,” Masand said. “Being the imaging spearhead for these programs, I am able to impart knowledge about the latest and the best imaging techniques to my clinical colleagues, which improves patient care and benefits the community.”

Congratulations to Dr. Masand for this prestigious excellence in teaching award!

113016juliekuzin175Julie Kuzin, a nurse practitioner at Texas Children’s Heart Center, recently received the 2017 American Association of Nurse Practitioners State Award for Excellence. This prestigious award is given annually to a dedicated nurse practitioner in each state who demonstrates excellence in their area of practice.

“Since joining the cardiology team in 2004, Kuzin has cemented her place as a smart and thorough clinician who delivers safe, effective, and efficient care to our patients and their families,” said Angela Gooden, a pediatric nurse practitioner and manager of Advanced Practice Providers in Cardiology, who nominated Kuzin for this award. “We applaud Julie for the outstanding contributions she has made to the APRN practice at Texas Children’s Hospital and across the state of Texas.”

Kuzin was recognized for a number of achievements, including her leadership in advancing professional standards and practice guidelines across the organization. In partnership with Texas Children’s, Kuzin was instrumental in developing a post-master’s Acute Care PNP certification program at Texas Tech University School of Nursing in 2014 to meet professional practice needs for increased access.

Kuzin has been an active participant in efforts to reform NP practice in the state of Texas. She has travelled to multiple legislative sessions and has disseminated key information from those visits. Her fervent commitment to advancing the scope of practice at Texas Children’s was most inspiring by her colleagues when she served as the first assistant director of Acute Care Advanced Practice Providers prior to taking on faculty duties with Texas Tech. Also, Kuzin has served as a model and mentor to providers with her participation in evidenced-based practice and research.

“Many of our APRNs are unsung heroes in their practice, doing what is ordinary to advanced nursing practice but is seen as extraordinary to patients and families,” said Charley Elliott, director of Advanced Practice Providers at Texas Children’s. “We congratulate Julie for achieving this prestigious state award of excellence.”