April 7, 2022

Recognition is a powerful component of patient experience. Creating a mechanism for patients to express their gratitude to those that care for them can lead to greater employee connection, retention, teamwork, and morale.

Caught You Caring (CYC) is an ongoing recognition program at Texas Children’s. It is offered to patients, families and staff, to recognize employees who have gone above and beyond their role to provide compassion to another person. We encourage everyone to submit CYCs for deserving team members! Once submitted, your CYC goes directly to the recipient and his or her leader. Submit a CYC here for someone you know!

Here are a few outstanding examples of Caught You Caring recipients:

  • “Kristian ‘Kiki’ Divin (Mark Wallace Tower Ambulatory Clinics) went out of her way to help me get formula to a patient when I wasn’t able to. I appreciate her teamwork and her commitment to patient care!”
  • “Dr. Wendy Valicek (Texas Children’s Pediatrics Shadow Creek) is the most caring and wonderful doctor I have ever known. She genuinely cares about my girls! She is the most responsive on MyChart – it’s almost as fast as when I’m texting with a friend! I couldn’t ask for a better pediatrician for my girls!!”
  • “The lab tech that drew my baby’s blood, Jamie Ash (West Campus Pathology), was amazing!!! She didn’t get bothered we were early. She immediately helped us. She was caring, nice, tried her best to cause the least pain to our four-year-old. She made a parent’s biggest headache, of having to get blood work for their small kid, such a great experience.”
  • “My son is autistic and had a meltdown and Maggie Roberts (The Woodlands Inpatient and Emergency Center) was so great and patient to assist me and my wife.”
  • “Kathleen Ashby (Legacy Tower Critical Care) is an exceptional nurse who is very collaborative with other disciplines. She takes excellent care of her patients and is receptive to therapist feedback to ensure best patient care.”
  • “Yesterday I had a procedure done at the Pavilion for Women and Helen Weledmariam (Pavilion for Women Facilities) was the patient transporter who took me down to my car afterwards. She was just so lovely! She had perfect timing, actually made conversation with me, and was a pleasure to interact with. As a Texas Children’s employee myself, I really appreciated Helen’s pleasant demeanor, encouragement, and the overall way in which she engaged with me. She is a great example of what it means to Live Compassionately!”
Patient Experience Week and Caught You Caring of the Year Awards

Patient Experience Week is around the corner, April 25-29, with activities, prizes and our annual Caught You Caring of the Year Award winner announcements. The Caught You Caring of the Year Awards recognize individuals who consistently demonstrate an outstanding commitment to compassionate care and teamwork. The Patient Experience Team is calling for Caught You Caring of the Year Award nominations through April 10. Click on the nomination form to recognize staff, providers and partners for moments when they went above and beyond.

This year’s Patient Experience Week theme, “Magical Moments Together” celebrates the special moments we create every day, with patients, families and each other. Stay tuned for more details about this fun-filled week.

April 6, 2021

As we celebrate Patient Experience Month at Texas Children’s and honor our team members who make a difference every day to our patients and their families, we also kick off a year of gratitude – and encourage our One Amazing Team to find ways to express their own thanks to the colleagues who brighten their days, and the patients and families entrusted to our care.

Patient Experience Month gives us an opportunity each year to applaud every employee who helps our patients navigate their Texas Children’s journey in a positive way. Whether you serve right at the bedside, lead a team, support our caregivers or play a non-clinical role, you have an impact and make a contribution that matters.

Each of us at Texas Children’s can also point to a fellow team member whose words or actions have brought us a smile, or kept our patients and their families uplifted. This month is an ideal time to start showing that person how grateful we are for everything they do in one of countless ways. Try celebrating an achievement, performing random acts of kindness, penning a note, making a personal connection, speaking their praises or simply stopping to say thank you.

You can even send a Caught You Caring note to a colleague who deserves recognition. Sending this to a colleague is a quick and easy way to say thank you to someone who has gone out of their way to help or provide a positive experience. Just write a few sentences about their impact and a Caught You Caring will be automatically sent to the person you are recognizing and their leader.

“I’m going about my day – and sometimes it’s an arduous day – and seeing the ‘Caught You Caring’ on my email subject line instantly makes me smile. I can’t wait to open it,” said Veronica Medrano, a medical social worker. “The message always makes me feel so good, and reminds me of all those warm feelings that are the reason I’m here.”

For more resources and tips on expressing gratitude, visit the Patient Experience resource site.

For a fun visual about ways you can express gratitude in 2021, click here. Print and post the flyer at your workstation to amplify unity and help inspire gratitude in others.

Show off your photos and win a prize

Now that you’ve committed to expressing your gratitude, submit a photo of your efforts to patientexperience@texaschildrens.org. Submissions will be accepted through Wednesday, April 21, and may be displayed on Connect in the virtual Acts of Gratitude photo gallery.

When you submit a photo, you will also be entered into a weekly prize drawing to be held on April 9, 16 and 23. Prizes include an entertainment package, fitness package and outdoor package. Submit your photo early for more opportunities to win.

Submit a nomination for the Caught You Caring of the Year Award

You may also consider submitting a nomination for the Caught You Caring of the Year Award on behalf of a colleague who goes the extra mile in their day-to-day activities, and stands out for their caring and compassionate interactions with our patients and their families. Nominations for the Caught You Caring of the Year are due by Wednesday, April 14.

To submit your Caught You Caring of the Year Award nomination, click here.

November 10, 2020

 

“Every time our nurse, Teresa, comes into the room, she always makes sure we are comfortable,” wrote a Texas Children’s patient family. “I’ve cried to her about our circumstances many times, and she comforted me. I believe she goes above and beyond her duties to make sure our time here is as nice as possible.”

This heartfelt note shared by a mother of a 9-month-old patient who was treated for an extensive brain injury at Texas Children’s shows how important it is to keep the patient family’s experience at the forefront of everything we do. A small gesture can go a long way to show just how much we care for our patients.

Every day at Texas Children’s, employees like Teresa Gomez make a positive difference. Whether for our patients or colleagues, these small acts of kindness often determine the experience we create. Gomez’s kindness not only made the stressful time less difficult for the family, but her selfless actions also caught the attention of her team members who shared her story on a Caught You Caring card.

Launched in 2015, Caught You Caring is a system wide program that allows patients, families and staff, to recognize employees who have gone above and beyond their role to provide compassion and kindness to another person. This could be in the care of a patient, service to a family or in support of a coworker.

Gomez, and six other Caught You Caring Award recipients, were recognized this year. In lieu of a formal ceremony due to COVID-19, Patient and Care Services coordinated surprise reveals for each of the winners that included a trophy and certificate presentation in the presence of their leadership teams.

Here are this year’s Caught You Caring Award winners:

  • Patricia Bratcher, Team Leader/PPCT – Specimen Management, The Woodlands. Pat is a genuine leader. Her colleagues say she always has a smile on her face and a hug for her patients if they need it. She takes the time to truly listen and consistently helps her patients, and their caregivers alike, feel at ease. A patient family described Pat in this way: “Miss Pat was the phlebotomist who took my child’s blood. She was so patient and made sure my nervous daughter was comfortable. She not only made us laugh but she also built up my daughter and boosted her esteem. We walked away from a stressful situation feeling better than we did when we arrived.”
  • Toni Davis, Lead ASR – West Campus Sleep Lab. Toni genuinely cares for people and she exemplifies that every day. If a patient, a family or a co-worker is in need, she takes the initiative to lend a helping hand. For example, when a family from out of town arrived the day before their child’s sleep study, the patient had a medical concern that needed immediate physician follow-up. The WC Sleep Lab physicians were not in clinic that day and the family was very anxious to see a physician. After making several phone calls, Toni was able to get their child evaluated by a physician at the Medical Center Campus on the same day and the family was very grateful.
  • Amanda Feilke, PA Surgical Hospitalist, The Woodlands. Amanda is a dependable and strong leader, a valuable clinical reference for her APP peers, and an advocate for her patients. A colleague recalls a time when Amanda spent countless times providing support and reassurance to a family whose child had spent several months in the NICU. During her days off, Amanda would come to the NICU to check up on her patient and the family. The consistent presence and reliable source of knowledge served as a stabilizing force for this family who had experienced a lot of chaos and uncertainty. Furthermore, Amanda arranged for a professional photographer to take pictures with the family and their baby that they ended up using for holiday greeting cards.
  • Teresa Gomez, Staff Nurse, 10 West Tower. Teresa places her patients, their families, and co-workers first in everything she does. Following discharge earlier in the week, a child’s g-tube had been accidentally dislodged and the patient’s parent was unable to reach anyone in clinic over the weekend. Teresa wasn’t charging at the time, but was quick to come to the charge nurse’s aide, volunteering to speak with the parents over the phone. She calmly coached them through the process. The family was especially grateful for Teresa’s patience with them and her willingness to pause from caring for her other patients on the unit to assist this patient family and nurse.
  • Susan Hardy-Croskey, MFM Clinical Nurse Coordinator, Medical Center Campus. As a member of the Nursing Retention Council, Susan strives to make working at Texas Children’s the best it can be. She ensures her team is providing the safest care to patients, and she makes sure to educate her patients as much as possible on the importance of prenatal care and follow up. We recently had a patient with many needs who had issues with transportation. Susan continuously checked on her via MyChart and phone when the patient could not make it to TCH due to distance. Susan helped her find assistance closer to home, and the patient was forever grateful.
  • Analisa Luedtke, Spanish Interpreter, Medical Center Campus. Analisa is professional, thorough and positive in her interactions with families, faculty and staff in the ICU, where children face complex diagnoses, medical issues and/or end-of-life issues. Her colleagues describe her as a model of politeness, calmness and grace, and no matter how busy she is caring for other patients and their families, she welcomes opportunities to help her colleagues in the most challenging situations. For example, when a patient in the PICU was nearing end-of-life and the family needed an interpreter, Analisa enthusiastically volunteered to help the family even though she was not assigned to the PICU that day. A colleague wrote, “I have always found Ms. Luedtke to be a wonderful partner to help me work with families. I am honored to call her my colleague.”
  • Steven Zack Wirt, Therapy Supervisor, PM&R. Steven demonstrates what it means to be a tireless leader. In times of high stress or difficult situations in the Inpatient Rehabilitation Unit (IRU), Steven is problem focused and solution driven. He provides positive and constructive feedback with equal caring and compassion. When a patient with a severe brain injury was admitted to the IRU, Steven, with the medical team’s support, determined new therapeutic techniques were needed for this patient. Without his leadership, recognition of a need, and development of a solution, the outcome for this patient would not have been as positive.
Caught You Caring: How to submit nominations

Texas Children’s wants to continue to recognize those who take great pride in the work they do and encourage patients, families and employees to catch someone who is making a difference.

“Keeping the Caught you Caring program top of mind is an important part of our recognition efforts and strengthening morale across the organization,” said Saraben Turner, senior project manager for Patient and Family Services. “We are always looking for new ways to shine the light on this program, because every day is a day to celebrate our employees for going above and beyond for our patients.”

If you’d like to nominate a colleague for this award, click here to access the submission form.

July 15, 2019

There are many types of supervisors in various work environments; those who enforce rules, and those like Ashly Swaty, who elevates them. As a Patient Care Manger in the Legacy Tower pediatric intensive care unit (PICU), Swaty makes sure that all the nurses are taken care of and have all materials and any assistance they need.

With the PICU being so unpredictable on a daily basis, in addition to payroll paper work and nursing rounding, she ensures that nurses take lunch breaks on time. Due to the busy and fast-paced environment at times nurses often cannot leave the bedside without someone covering their assignment. Swaty is known for not hesitating to step in and make sure both the patient and nurse are taken care of daily.

“Her heart is to serve our patients, families, and staff. She consistently goes above and beyond to ensure those around her have the best experience possible,” Director of Nursing, Shannon Holland said. “In all my years of leadership, I have rarely met someone with Ashly’s dedication and compassion.”

Holland recalled a time on a busy day when a nurse skipped lunch because she was extremely busy managing her very sick patient.

“Ashly jumped in feet first, took over care, and insisted the nurse take a break,” she added. “She did all of this with a smile and supportive and caring attitude. She is truly a servant leader who is caring, genuine, and the embodiment of Caught You Caring!”

Another part of Ashly’s job is to sit down with patients’ parents to understand the motivation behind certain behavior and how they can move forward with better outcomes.

“I truly love being with the families!” Swaty said. I know these days may be the worst of many in their lives, but it means the world to me knowing I can bring just a little bit of comfort or knowledge, when they’re questioning something.”

The appreciation and compassion she has for her patients and nurses goes hand in hand. Her selfless personality is why she believes there are others that deserve this award as well, nonetheless, she is grateful for the honor and the opportunity to work for such a prestigious organization.

“I was so shocked when I found out. I was mostly surprised because, honestly, there are so many people who do great things here in the PICU, so anybody in this whole place could have won,” Swaty said. “It’s such a great honor to be recognized, and an even greater honor to work for Texas Children’s.”

July 9, 2019

Every team needs someone who wants to do the required tasks that no one else is willing to carryout. Calvin Haskett is that person as the waste removal unit support assistant in the Facilities Operations Department.

When he walks in at six o’clock in the morning before anything, he drinks a cup of coffee to prepare for a day of hard work, as he is known for putting his all in every day. According to Haskett after making sure his areas are clean and all of his supplies are prepped, he makes sure that his coworker is in good shape and prepared for the day as well. His highly considerate personality and drive is why his managers speak so highly of him.

“Calvin is soft spoken and pays attention to every aspect of his job,” Assistant Director of Facility Operations Lisa Green said. “Calvin recently requested off for vacation and when another employee had an emergency and needed the same days off, he later rescheduled his vacation time around his coworker’s time off to make sure the department was not short staffed. That is just one example of his unconditional dedication to our team.”

Haskett has been at Texas Children’s hospital for seven years and his urge to learn more grows every year. His mangers and co-workers have been captivated as he practices Error Prevention in his work even though he has not had the official training that is provided to managers.

His willingness to go above and beyond is shown on a daily basis. With this being his first award on the job, Haskett said he could not believe he was being recognized for his work.

“I felt shocked and did not know what to say at first,” Haskett said. “I have never gotten an award and it’s something very special that I will always remember. I love working at Texas Children’s; it’s a good company to work for with good, caring people.”

June 24, 2019

After nearly 30 years at Texas Children’s, Xavier George is just as devoted to patient care as he was when he first stepped foot in the hospital. As a patient care assistant (PCA) George is the first person to see the patients in the post anesthesia care unit (PACU) at the Medical Center Campus. The majority of his time at Texas Children’s he has been the comforting part of the patient’s experience, easing any apprehensions they may have before procedures.

“It’s so fantastic to work for Texas Children’s,” George said. “All of my hard worker and the reasons that I continue to come to work, day after day and year after year, is for the children.”

George’s compassion and experience with the children helps decrease anxiety of the parents and guardians as well.

“We have been coming here for two years now and every time we come, Xavier is kind, compassionate, friendly, and upbeat,” the parent of a patient said. “I cannot say enough nice things about him, he’s so great!”

George has the ability to work in many roles in PACU. He is able to work the waiting room and pre-op and PACU secretary. His flexibility makes it so much easier for everyone on the department to do their job.

“Xavier demonstrates teamwork and compassion towards coworker’s on a daily basis,” Perioperative Nursing Manager Beth Jones said. “He works well with the pre-op team to ensure positive experience for our patients. He steps in wherever he is needed to ensure a positive work environment. He will do all of this with a positive attitude. It is great having him on my team.”

June 17, 2019

Every day there is a different task and work space, but the quality of Kristi White’s patient care in always the same; extraordinary. As the charge respiratory therapist, White assumes the responsibility of assisting almost everyone whether it is relieving people for breaks, setting up equipment, or attending meetings. Despite the many busy days, she says that being successful is all about remaining confident and encouraging.

“It’s a positive and happy environment here. Even on their worst days, the kids don’t think of the negative things,” White said. Since the children are already so positive, we have to remain that way as well to keep the energy up.”

White is the epitome of positivity as she continues to be dedicated to making sure her patients and co-workers keep a smile on their faces as the head of the Respiratory Department’s Morale Committee. She is also a forward thinker and takes initiative when it comes to advancing a patient’s recovery.

“Kristi steps out of her role as a respiratory therapist all the time,” Respiratory Care Supervisor Lindsey Franks said. “She goes above and beyond for not only the people in our department, but for our patients as well. She is an amazing knowledgeable charge therapist who is always willing to go the extra mile.”

Franks recalled a time when Kristi first started at West Campus and had a patient who was on a home continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) mask. She was very concerned that the child was outgrowing the mask and knew it was something that needed to be accessed.

“Kristi took time out of her busy day to call the home health company, give them the patient’s name, serial number of mask, and inform them that the patient needs a mask refitting as soon as possible,” Franks said. “She is more than deserving of the Caught You Caring Award because to me, it is all about the little things.”

White’s innate ability to automatically adhere to the needs of patients regardless of what it is makes her stand out from others. She has no problem jumping into a full body Disney character costume to please a patient, or even come in early or stay late just to finish a project for the kids. She says that thinking outside of the box is such a regular action for her that she didn’t expect to be acknowledged for it, especially this time around.

“I actually laughed and I said, who nominated me for this?” White said amusingly. “I didn’t believe it, because in my mind I just do regular things that a pediatric respiratory therapist would do. However, that is the nature of this department, there is always a surprise and I am very appreciative of this particular one. The possibilities, opportunities, and experiences are endless here at Texas Children’s.”