June 15, 2020

Every 10 years, the U.S. Constitution requires that all residents of the United State are counted. The 2020 Census will have a lasting impact on our country and the state of Texas. The count will determine how many members of congress can represent the interests of Texans in Washington and how hundreds of billions of federal dollars will be distributed amongst the states. Over the next decade, the Census count will help lawmakers at all levels of government, business executives, school officials, and leaders of various organizations make critical decisions specific to the needs of their communities. Therefore the Census count will have broad impacts for years to come on issues that touch our everyday life like where new schools are needed, road and infrastructure investments, and how Medicaid, CHIP and other health program funding will be allocated. An undercount would dramatically deprive various populations, community organizations, businesses, and institutions like ours of vital public and private resources.

It is extremely important that every member of our One Amazing Team engage in their civic duty and respond to the 2020 Census questionnaire as soon as possible. We should all encourage our family and friends to do the same.

As Mayor Turner recently shared, “Houston could lose about $1,578 for each person who is not counted. And if we undercount 10% of the city’s population, we could lose $3.78 billion over the course of a decade.”

In mid-March, most households received an invitation in the mail to respond to the 2020 Census, followed by multiple reminders and a paper questionnaire. Census takers are scheduled to visit households that have not yet responded to the 2020 Census beginning in August.

There are four easy ways to respond to the Census

Secure Internet: For the first time this year, the Census will be available online.
https://2020census.gov/en/ways-to-respond/responding-online.html

Respond by phone: The census phone lines are available at 1-800-923-8282.
https://2020census.gov/en/ways-to-respond/responding-by-phone.html

Respond by mail: By now, every home was mailed a hard copy Census form that can be filled out and returned. Information on how to complete the Census accurately is in the link below.
https://2020census.gov/en/ways-to-respond/responding-by-mail.html

In-Person interview: United States Census Bureau enumerators will visit residences that choose not to self-respond.
August 11 – October 31, 2020: Census takers will interview homes that haven’t responded to the 2020 Census to help make sure everyone is counted.

Need assistance?
Lines are open. CST seven days per week.
English (1-844-330-2020) and Spanish (1-844-468-2020).

If you service communities with different language needs, please check out the language-specific phone lines at: https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/2020-census/planning-management/memo-series/2020-memo-2019_18.html

For the past several years, Texas Children’s Hospital and the Houston Texans have challenged kids of all ages and abilities to be active at least 60 minutes every day through PLAY 60, the NFL initiative encouraging kids to start healthy habits young – an initiative that Texas Children’s serves as the local sponsor of. That mission has not changed – and has become even more important – amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

To help motivate kids to get moving, Texas Children’s and the Texans are hosting a Get Fit with TORO Week this week (June 15-19) and Junior Cheerleaders Online Dance Parties (every Friday for the next few weeks). Details about each event are below. Have fun and keep moving!

Get Fit with TORO Week
Get Fit with TORO is the elementary school program that Texas Children’s sponsors each academic year. With school suspended to COVID-19 and now out due to summer, TORO wanted to bring the curriculum to kids at home.

June 15-19

  • Every day this week at 5 p.m.
  • Daily filmed Zoom calls with TORO and “Coach Ryan” – each day focused on a new key to fitness, with a recap and special guest on Friday.
  • The videos will be live streamed each night on HoustonTexans.com/TORO, TORO’s Facebook and on TORO’s Twitter. The videos will be available afterwards on TORO’s Instagram and YouTube.

Event schedule
Monday: Flexibility
Tuesday: Muscular Strength
Wednesday: Cardio
Thursday: Nutrition
Friday: Recap with special guest

Junior Cheerleaders Online Dance Party
Calling all dancers … the Houston Texans Cheerleaders invite you to join the Junior Cheerleaders Dance Party, presented by Texas Children’s! Practice along with them, record your routine and share with us using #TCHPlay60 #TCHJuniorCheer.

Texas Children’s Hospital is the Official Children’s Hospital of the Houston Texans. To learn more about our partnership, visit: texaschildrens.org/texans.

June 11, 2020

Texas Children’s joins TMC in peaceful protest and walking vigil

On Tuesday, while George Floyd was being laid to rest in a solemn private service in Pearland, Texas, our Texas Children’s family joined almost 1,500 health care professionals in the Texas Medical Center for a peaceful protest with Scientists and Health Professionals for Black Lives​.

Click here for an inspiring video from the event.​

George Floyd grew up in Houston, and on May 25, he died beneath the knee of a police officer in Minneapolis, MN. His death has ignited global outrage and sparked more than two weeks of fervent protests and a call to action.

Tuesday’s peaceful protest and vigil were organized by Malcolm Moses and Ayesha Khan with the Association for Minority Biomedical Research (AMBR), who both moved the crowd with their heartfelt words. They were joined by Texas Children’s Cancer Center physician Dr. Rayne Rouce whose impassioned speech moved the crowd and brought to light the struggles she, her colleagues, and patients face on a daily basis.

“Being a black woman who is a physician and scientist means living in dual realities,” Rouce said to the crowd. “It means sometimes wondering if I can not only make a difference in the health of an individual patient but reflecting on how much needs to happen to make a difference in the health of all black people. It means struggling to find the words to explain to a colleague why their recommendations, which may seem doable, are not feasible for a black patient living in a food desert or one who does not have consistent transportation. It means choosing when to bite my tongue and when to speak up regarding the constant barrage of racially insensitive encounters we face on a sometimes daily basis. It means advocating for patients who look like me.”

The speeches in the Commons were followed by a walking vigil. Participants walked around the Texas Medical Center, wearing masks and carrying signs with messages of support for the Black Lives Matter movement. The protest was a critical demonstration intended to provide support and awareness.

On Monday, Texas Children’s President and CEO Mark Wallace sent a note to all Texas Children’s employees and faculty, sharing his bold stance against systemic racism and oppression and urged people to join the march. Texas Children’s was proudly represented at the event with strong attendance by employees, staff, and physicians, including Wallace, his wife Shannon, our in-chiefs, medical staff leaders, and many of our executives.

“In my 30 years leading this organization, I have not seen an event like this in the TMC,” Wallace said. “I could not have been more proud of all of the students, researchers, and medical professionals, some who are just starting out in their careers, organizing this protest on behalf of all of us in the Texas Medical Center. And although it saddens me that we are not where we need to be today, I’m grateful that we’re finally at an inflection point where so many people around the world have been moved to rise up and bring about change.”

Khan, President of AMBR, noted that Tuesday’s protest was the first time space within the Texas Medical Center was used to amplify black voices and directly address racism, especially related to health care disparities, biases among medical providers and the experience of minority medical students. “Protests like ours are especially important within health care,” Khan said. “It is an important first step.”

“Colleagues from all different walks of life came together as allies to promote equality and, most importantly, to promote respect for humanity. It was a powerful display of alliance, togetherness, and condemnation of racism, and I was honored to participate with colleagues from Texas Children’s Hospital,” said Jackie Ward, Texas Children’s Vice President and Associate Chief Nursing Officer.

Texas Children’s Senior Vice President and General Counsel Lance Lightfoot attended with his family. “I attended with my wife and my 16-year-old son because I felt it was important for my family to show support for the Floyd family and the Black Lives Matter movement,” Lightfoot said. “We were moved by the speakers and the crowd, and I know it’s a day we won’t forget. I felt even prouder to be there as part of Texas Children’s, an organization that promotes diversity and practices inclusion every day.”

“It’s a powerful and bold start,” Wallace said. “We have much more work to do, and I’m so encouraged to see so many of us are taking deliberate, decisive steps to affect real change. Each one of us have a role to play, and this is our moment to speak up, speak out, and create the world we want the next generation to live in.”

June 9, 2020

As we face the COVID-19 pandemic together, Annalyn DeMello shares her thoughts on the value of nursing in public health and how every nurse – whether a hospital nurse, educator or researcher – can make a positive impact towards enhancing patient care and outcomes in their community. Read more

June 8, 2020

As the world continues to fight COVID-19, Texas Children’s has implemented a number of changes to create an overall health care experience that promotes social distancing — tagged a touchless experience.

This experience strives to strike a balance between enforcing an important life-saving practice, while also maintaining the high quality care that our patients and families expect. Employees’ health and well-being is also a priority as changes around the organization are made. These are many of the new procedures in place:

MyChart Pre Check-In

For many years now, patients and families have been able to access MyChart to schedule appointments, access medical records, refill prescriptions and contact providers. But amid our current pandemic, there is an even greater emphasis on the PreCheck-In feature.

Launched last summer, this feature allows the patient to complete the check-in process online, which includes updating demographics and insurance information, signing documents, making payments, verifying meds and allergies, and answering patient questionnaires. PreCheck-In saves patients time, limits interaction with our staff, and reduces the amount of time spent at registration desks when they arrive for an appointment.

Video visits

MyChart also allows patients to complete video visits depending on the specific health care need. Each patient is evaluated individually to determine qualification, but the level of convenience and effectiveness is nothing short of remarkable.

In an article previously reported in Connect news Dr. Jeffrey Kim, director of the Arrhythmia and Pacing (Electrophysiology) Service at Texas Children’s Hospital, said his patients are good candidates for video visits because they typically don’t need surgical intervention. For about a month during the pandemic, Kim said almost all arrhythmia and pacing patients were utilizing video visits.

During that interview Kim mentioned that he’d conducted an appointment with a patient while they were standing in the middle of a field on their ranch.

Texas Children’s Pediatrics and Urgent Care Centers are also using video visits. For more information about MyChart video visits, go to texaschildrens.org/mychartvideo

Drive-Through visits

When video and other e-health options are not available, drive-through care is a growing option at some Texas Children’s clinics.

OB Drive-Through Clinic: The drive-through prenatal care clinic at Texas Children’s allows pregnant women who do not need to be seen in the clinic to remain in their vehicles while being assessed by a health care professional. This reduces potential patient, health care professional, and staff exposure to COVID-19.

Drive-Through Pharmacy: Texas Children’s Pharmacy Services is now offering curbside pick-up. All Texas Children’s patients are eligible for this prescription service and can pick up refills and new prescriptions at select locations.

Drive-Through Patient Express: The Dermatology Clinic at Texas Children’s also offers drive-through services in the innovate “Patient Express” line located in a section of the Wallace Tower valet line. Additional service lines and procedures from around the organization are likely to be available in the Patient Express soon.

Physical distancing at Texas Children’s facilities
  • Pre-check in ambassadors are now in place in elevator lobbies, eliminating the need for patients and families to press elevator buttons.
  • Employees are encouraged to use service elevators or take the stairs so that main elevators can be reserved for patients and families.
  • Floor stickers and signage as a reminder of a 6-foot distance requirement have been placed throughout our organization.
  • Furniture in dining and waiting areas have been spread apart at least six-feet.
  • Any patients who are diagnosed with COVID-19 are immediately isolated and not cared for within proximity of non-COVID patients.
  • Providers and staff are continuously being trained to provide optimum treatment while not physically touching patients and families.

“I am so proud of the way our organization has adapted to this demand for new health care options,” said Paige Schulz, assistant vice president for Clinical Support and Research Administration.

Schulz says Texas Children’s success during this time can largely be attributed to our spirit of innovation and willingness to embrace change. “As technology evolves and we continue to listen to the needs of our families, additional procedures may be implemented to keep our employees, patients and families safe.”

For a glimpse of what a visit to the hospital might look like, view our latest video.

On his blog this week, Mark Wallace takes a bold stand on the movement that has captured the world’s attention. Read more

June 2, 2020

National Running Day is just around the corner and what better time than now to become more active. All across the country Wednesday, June 3 is the annual appreciation for running as a sport — and as an avenue to overall health and well-being.

Getting out and exercising — especially during this pandemic — can help keep your stress levels down and your spirits high. In a world where social distancing is becoming normal, we can still get out and exercise with peers as a way to stay connected to one another. Now more than ever it is important to know that we are not alone during this pandemic. We are encouraging you to mask up, get out for a jog and consider becoming part of the Texas Children’s running community.

“Running has such great benefits for our physical health, emotional health and mental health,” said Kelley Hernandez, running team coordinator for Texas Children’s Hospital. “As we all continue to navigate life with the coronavirus, it’s especially important that we manage our stress as well so that we can take care of ourselves and others.”

What’s even better is that you can get healthy and support Texas Children’s Hospital at the same time through the Chevron Houston Marathon/Aramco Houston Half Marathon “Run for a Reason” program.

If you are interested in running the Chevron Houston Marathon/Aramco Houston Half Marathon — Sunday, January 17, 2021 — on behalf of Texas Children’s Hospital register at texaschildrens.org/houstonmarathon.