November 14, 2017

As we wrap up our Caught You Caring series on Connect, we share one more inspiring story of a Texas Children’s employee who demonstrates what it means to go above and beyond for her patients and their families.

For nearly eight years, Amanda Riddle has found it her life’s passion to take care of sick children. As a neurology nurse in the Epilepsy Monitoring Unit, she makes sure her patients have the best possible experience during their hospital stay as many of them are sometimes here for several months on the unit.

“I nominated Amanda for the Caught You Caring award because she truly embodies a caregiver,” said Elizabeth Davis, patient care manager in Neurology. “She lives the values and demonstrates true advocacy and empathy for patients, families and staff. She always greets patients and their families to see if they are having a great experience during their hospital stay, and she is willing to support her colleagues when they need a helping hand.”

Recently, Amanda noticed that one of the floor’s newer nurses was struggling with her current patient load. Amanda rushed in to help by performing blood draws and handling lab work so that her colleague could focus on her other patients with more urgent needs.

Her colleagues on the unit describe Amanda as a coworker who has a “passion for the work that she does which is impossible to miss. Whenever Amanda is on the unit, she will not let you be in the trenches alone.”

Launched in 2015, Texas Children’s Caught You Caring program is a systemwide program that recognizes employees for going above and beyond to provide compassion and kindness in the care of a patient, family or co-worker. Recently, Riddle was among more than a dozen employees who received a pair of tickets to watch the Houston Texans Play 60 game on October 1, after being recognized for his acts of kindness through this program.

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

To nominate a colleague, Caught You Caring boxes and cards can be found across the Texas Children’s hospital system for patients and families to fill out. Employees can fill out a staff recognition.

For the past four weeks, Connect featured a series of Caught You Caring videos spotlighting several of our employees who have gone above and beyond their role in the care of our patients and their families.

In case you missed it, click on the links below to view the rest of the series.

Heather Eppleheimer
Joyce Enochs
Keith Thomas
Donald Wilkins

October 10, 2017

Dr. Hsiao-Tuan Chao received the 2017 Outstanding Junior Member Award from the Child Neurology Society for her discovery of the genetic cause of a neurodevelopmental condition known as the Hypotonia Ataxia and Developmental Disorder Syndrome.

Chao is the clinical instructor in pediatric neurology at Baylor College of Medicine and physician-scientist at the Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute (NRI) at Texas Children’s in the laboratory of Dr. Hugo J. Bellen.

Through large-scale collaborative efforts with the Undiagnosed Diseases Network (UDN) and Baylor Genetics Laboratory (BGL), Chao’s research studies revealed the pathogenic role of damaging genetic changes in Early B-Cell Factor 3 (EBF3) in neurodevelopment and cognition. Her research continues to focus on elucidating the role of EBF3 dysfunction and transcriptional dysregulation of neural circuits in highly prevalent childhood disorders such as intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorder.

Dr. Davut Pehlivan, a medical resident in pediatric neurology and physician-scientist at Baylor College of Medicine in the laboratory of Dr. James Lupski, is the recipient of the 2017 M. Richard KoenigsBerger Scholarship Award from the Child Neurology Society for his studies related to arthrogryposis patients.

Pehlivan analyzed 108 arthrogryposis families using whole exam sequencing approach as part of Baylor-Hopkins Center for Mendelian Genomics initiative. His studies made important contributions to understanding the disease pathogenesis by showing evidence for oligogenic inheritance in arthrogryposis and yielded several novel genes causing arthrogryposis.

The Child Neurology Society established this scholarship award in 2013 to honor the memory of . The awardee is selected between CNS Junior Members/residents submitting the best abstract in the areas of neonatal neurology, genetic diseases, HIV or metabolic disorders.

August 15, 2017

Dr. Rebecca Schultz, a member of Texas Children’s Epilepsy team in Pediatric Neurology was recently named the 2017 recipient of the Association of Child Neurology Nurses (ACNN) Excellence in Child Neurology Practitioner Award.

This prestigious award recognizes and honors the nurse practitioner or physician’s assistant who, as a member of the ACNN, has rendered distinguished service within the profession of child neurology nursing.

Schultz is one who demonstrates, through strength of character and competence, a commitment to the care of children with neurological disorders and their families. She is acknowledged by her peers as one who exhibits qualities of compassion, resourcefulness, leadership, knowledge, communication and inspiration.

August 1, 2017

Texas Children’s is proud to announce Dr. James Riviello as associate section head for Epilepsy, Neurophysiology and Neurocritical Care in the section of Neurology and Developmental Neuroscience.

Riviello’s clinical interests include seizures, convulsions, medically refractory epilepsy and the evaluation of children for epilepsy surgery and Tuberous Sclerosis Complex. He also has a special interest in the evaluation and management of the epileptic encephalopathies, especially Landau-Kleffner Syndrome and electrical status epilepticus of sleep.

Riviello, who also serves as professor of pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine, received both his undergraduate and medical degrees from Tufts University. He completed his residency in pediatrics and subsequently his fellowship training in Child Neurology at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children in Philadelphia. Riviello also had additional training in anesthesiology at Temple University Hospital.

Riviello is a member of several professional organizations including the Child Neurology Society, American Academy of Neurology, American Clinical Neurophysiology Society and Neurocritical Care Society. He served as chair of the Child Neurology Section of American Academy of Neurology and is a founding member of the Pediatric Status Epilepticus Research Group.

As associate section head, Riviello’s responsibilities will include the administration and development of programs within epilepsy, neurophysiology and neurocritical care.

April 26, 2017

Texas Children’s neuroradiologist Dr. Michael Paldino received the 2017 Lucien Levy Best Research Article by the American Journal of Neuroradiology (AJNR).

In his article titled, “Brain Network Architecture and Global Intelligence in Children with Focal Epilepsy,” Paldino and his colleagues Drs. Wei Zhang and David Chu are working to translate quantitative imaging techniques for mapping the network of the human brain into clinical tools that will someday improve the care of children with epilepsy. Their work is helping to advance the mission of Texas Children’s as we lead with cutting-edge technology in the global community. Paldino is the first neuroradiologist at Texas Children’s to receive this prestigious award.

This award is named for the late AJNR senior editor who championed its establishment and recognizes the best original research paper accepted in 2016. Paldino’s award-winning paper was published electronically on October 13, 2016, and appeared in the February print issue.

April 18, 2017

We are less than one month away from the 2017 MS150 Bike Ride! This year’s ride is Saturday, April 29 and Sunday, April 30.

The MS150 is an annual event sponsored by the MS Society to benefit those struggling with Multiple Sclerosis. It’s a two-day bike ride from Houston to Austin, with an overnight stay in LaGrange, TX. This is the twelfth year Team Texas Children’s will be participating, and to date we’ve raised more than $2.0M to support the MS Society. This year we have approximately 130 riders registered on our team, and they need your help.

While our riders are important, our volunteers are equally so! Our riders literally could not make it without the tremendous support they receive from our volunteers. This year there are a variety of volunteer opportunities in Houston before the ride, in LaGrange, and in Austin, to name just a few. School-aged children and youth old enough they will not distract you from your volunteer service are welcome. Please note – a special thank you to West Campus staff members who have volunteered to support Ride Start.

You don’t have to volunteer for the entire weekend. You can help with one or more parts of the event. If you’re interested in volunteering, please register using the link below. If multiple members of a family are volunteering, each person will need to register individually. The survey will provide all the information you need, including details about the different dates and times volunteers are needed.

Remember, volunteers work hard – but it’s also a lot of fun.

Registration closes Wednesday, April 19. Online training sessions will be conducted Friday, April 21, and Monday, April 24. You will be sent an email meeting invitation.

To register, visit:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/D76M7Q7

Thank you in advance to everyone who donates their time and efforts to this very worthy cause. Whether you are a rider or a volunteer, you are making a difference.

Please feel free to contact Jeff Reinhart, Team Texas Children’s logistics and volunteer coordinator, at ext. 2-4265 with questions.

December 13, 2016

121416drluersson175Dr. Thomas Luerssen has been given the 2016 Franc D. Ingraham Award for Distinguished Service and Achievement by the American Association of Neurological Surgeons/CNS Section of Pediatric Neurological Surgery. The award is the highest honor given by the organization and recognizes individuals whose achievements have advanced the field of pediatric neurosurgery. This is only the ninth time the award has been given since its inception in 1988.

Dr. Luerssen is chief quality officer for surgery and a neurosurgeon at Texas Children’s Hospital and a professor of neurosurgery at the Baylor College of Medicine. He is also the former chief of neurosurgery at Texas Children’s.

“It is a true honor for me to follow the great legacy of Dr. Tom Luerssen who has built an incredibly strong neurosurgery service at Texas Children’s,” said Dr. Howard Weiner, chief of Neurosurgery at Texas Children’s.

After graduating many outstanding pediatric neurosurgery fellows over the last decade, as well as recruiting a truly excellent core team of pediatric neurosurgeons here, Luerssen has been recognized for his many leadership roles in pediatric neurosurgery over the course of his career. Among those roles are chairman of the AANS/CNS Section on Pediatric Neurological Surgery and president of the American Society of Pediatric Neurosurgeons. He also spent 18 years on practicing at Indiana University and 11 years at Texas Children’s. These accomplishments are in addition to his many contributions to the fields of neurotrauma, quality improvement and patient safety in pediatric neurosurgery.

Dr. Charles D. Fraser, Jr., surgeon-in-chief at Texas Children’s said, “We are very proud of Dr. Luerssen’s accomplishments and are extremely fortunate to have him as part of the legacy of Texas Children’s Department of Surgery.”