January 2, 2024

In December’s Patient Access Forum senior leaders participated in a fireside chat to discuss pertinent issues affecting access and how we can create capacity and opportunity to get our patients in the door quicker, all while delivering exceptional patient care.

This year’s event not only featured some lively discussion, but also included plenty of holiday festivities with Christmas music, refreshments, a facility dog and pictures with Santa.

Charla Bassey, assistant director of the Patient Contact Center, facilitated the fireside chat. Panel participants included:

  • Dan Gollins, President TCP/TCUC
  • Dr. Robert Ball, Medical Director, eHealth
  • Laura Hardy, Vice President
  • Denise Tanner-Brown, Associate Chief Nurse Executive and Vice President
  • Trent Johnson, Vice President

While each panelist brought their own expertise and perspective to the discussion, they all agreed, we can’t stop and must keep looking forward to provide better solutions to fit the changing landscape. Below are highlights from the discussion.

How do we stay embedded in the community and customer obsessed?
“The great thing about Texas Children’s is that we have such a large primary care structure. We have 69 locations across Houston, Austin, and College Station. We’re the largest pediatric group in the country. It is really important to be able to pick up the phone, you have a concern, and get in the door. The work Dr. Ball and Grace [Karon] and team have done around e-consults has us really thinking differently. It doesn’t have to be a face-to-face contact, but how do we get pediatricians the right answers so they can give the family the answers? For us we’re looking at how we stay engaged with community. So we have a lot of work that goes on around sponsorships. We have a lot of staff, physicians that live in the community. We look to them to ask, what’s important to you? What sponsorships? What programs? How do you engage with your community? It’s really important you engage your families in the communities they live; respect the differences that happen in those communities. Houston is so big you can drive an hour or so and still be in Houston, and it’s still very, very different.” – Dan Gollins

Can you share insights into any specific initiatives or investments made by the organization to optimize accessibility for patients and positively impact their journey within the healthcare system?
“We are doing so much and I really want to thank everyone in this room because there are so many different projects that are going on from how we connect with our patients to how we schedule an appointment, and how we get referrals through the door. There’s been a lot of work done on the behavioral health front in getting clinicians embedded into our TCP practices. So those of you who have tried to get a psychiatry appointment or psychology appointment over the last several years, that is very difficult to do in the Houston area. There are just not a lot of providers, but in partnership with TCP we have masters level clinicians embedded in 19 practices serving about 4,000 patients right now, so it’s a huge undertaking and really trying to get the right care at the right time at the right location for these families.” – Laura Hardy

What major technology or industry evolutions do you think we need to start considering today for major landscape changes in the future?
“I think the keyword is one size doesn’t fit all. There’s nothing more frustrating for families than spending an hour traveling three miles in Houston in traffic and fighting their way through parking and then they see their provider for three minutes. And so that choice (telemedicine) has to be driven and TCP has shown this over and over, families and parents are really good judges of what they need. We need to give them super-sized menu options of how to connect with us and then they will become very good at choosing what the right thing is for them and we don’t have to tell them, you can only schedule this online if it fits in this tiny box. Also, some of the big transitions we’re going to see over the next few years is really having the ability to monitor patients at home so they don’t have to come in for their blood pressure check, etc. I think virtual nursing is going to be a big impact.” – Dr. Robert Ball

How is our organization enhancing patient engagement strategies? In light of increasing options for patients beyond Texas Children’s, what initiatives are in place to ensure we are the preferred and consistent choice for their healthcare needs?
“It’s about the human experience and the personal connections. When I think about patient experience, I bracket it into four categories. First of all pre engagement. We are all ambassadors of Texas Children’s right, so we are wearing that brand either literally or figuratively. Next is the engagement opportunity and that’s when they call us. They need our services. They’re looking for someone to connect with them. The next category is the actual interaction. So you’ve engaged with them. Now they’re coming into the clinic. We do a lot of training for leaders and staff just to make sure we can make those intentional connections and solidify those moments for them, right, because they’re not going to forget those moments. Finally it is about the follow up, so when they’re getting ready to leave. Do we have the right tools and infrastructure in place so they can care for their child post experience. We’ve already talked about telemedicine and those options to increase access, but the one thing I want to drive home about the work we’re doing here at Texas Children’s that can’t be replicated, it’s about those personal connections. – Denise Tanner-Brown

As a leader at Texas Children’s, where do you identify the greatest opportunity for enhancing patient access? Recognizing the sustained demand for Inpatient Rehab services, could you elaborate on the organization’s plans to expand access for patients, both within our main facility and across community locations?
“We run consistently full all the time in that unit because there’s not a lot of IRU beds for pediatric patients. Back in November on the 13th, we actually did a ribbon cutting for an expansion. We expanded four beds, and as you all have guessed, those instantly were filled. There’s a lot of work that goes as we restack the buildings we have here. Certainly, we have to be thoughtful of critical care and acute care as well. They all have to be looked at together, but there is a desire to continue to expand the IRU. Before we rush into that, we need to assess and make sure the best decision based on looking at not only IRU demand but acute and critical care as well. And that’s what we’re carefully thinking through before we ultimately go into that bigger expansion.” – Trent Johnson

The number one question the audience wanted to know: Are you a Beyoncé fan or a Swifty? The majority of our panelists said they were Team Taylor! Denise Tanner-Brown did share with the forum that she is the President of the Beehive!

Many thanks to the Patient Access Forum Steering Team for creating and organizing the Access and Patient Experience forum. Members include, Bryan Samp, Kathleen Wood, Grace Karon, Leroy Thomas, Jr., Jennie Maldonado, Luke Horton, Michael Potter, and Enrique Gonzalez. Leaders: Charla Bassey & Kimberly Troupe.

April 5, 2023

Guiding patients through the admissions process is hard work and is sometimes taken for granted, but it is a vital component of patient care. For patients and their families, a member of the patient access team is typically the first person they interact with either when they pre-register for their service or when they walk through our doors. Those interactions can get our patients and their families off on the right foot as they seek care from our clinicians.

Contact Center Supervisor Lupyta Chapa knows how important her team’s role is in the overall journey and relishes the opportunity to provide solutions and a positive experience for patients and their families.

“Every day, our team tirelessly works to secure benefits and authorizations for services rendered, and usually without any issues. When we do encounter a bump in the road or setback, that’s when the real magic happens and our team members kick into gear,” said Chapa. “The team comes together to find solutions with one goal in mind, giving our patients the care they deserve. This team is amazing and I’m so proud to be part of it. This is why I have dedicated over 16 years of my career at Texas Children’s to the Pre-Service department.”

The Pre-Service department manages all outpatient scheduled events for the Medical Center Campus, Pavilion for Women, The Woodlands Campus, West Campus, Health Centers and the Austin-Mopac clinic.

There are many dedicated team members responsible for pre-service, admissions and scheduling. Through Caught You Caring, they are recognized every day for their efforts. Here are a few highlights:

Judith (Judi) Unrau, Patient Access Representative
We were here a week ago and she introduced herself to my son as we were leaving, and made him smile. Today, she got him laughing and giggling when he was in major pain and scared because he needed blood work. After my son was in procedure, my husband and I were both hungry and she found us a place to stash our bags so we didn’t have to carry everything we had with us to go eat. She laughed and joked and made us feel more comfortable as we waited. She calmed some of my fears. When the waiting room was empty, she volunteered to change the TV station for us. I can’t thank her enough for everything she’s done for us today.

Margarita Briseno, Patient Access Representative
The customer service was very good, helpful and professional. Margarita has a big smile, a helping hand, and is very good with the kids. I will vote for her for best customer service support at the hospital. Keep up the good work and thank you.

Caroline Jones, Contact Center Representative
I received a call today from an upset mom who was so upset and worried her son’s dental appointment for surgery would need to be cancelled. I talked with mom telling her I would look into it and noted the referral shell. Caroline was working the appointment and took it upon herself to reach out to me to see what was going on. And then went above and beyond to see how we could make sure the surgery was approved and not cancelled for this Tricare patient. Caroline escalated the request to Tricare and went way above and beyond even escalating to them. I’m super thankful that Caroline was on this referral shell and thought outside the box to help out. I really appreciate her and her amazingness!!! So glad she’s a part of our Pre-Service Team.

Cristina Aguilar, Patient Access Coordinator
When I got on the phone with Cristina I had already been on the phone for almost two hours trying to make an appointment to see a doctor. I was becoming a little frustrated and struggling to remain calm, and Cristina laid out all of my options clearly, answered my questions with kindness and care, and when I related to her some of the issues that impacted me personally she asked me to hold briefly. It was actually a brief hold, and during that time she went around the office and was able to find me an appointment from a cancellation so I could see a physician I was comfortable with and so I could receive care at a time that was convenient for me. On top of that, she was just so dang nice! Cristina is professional, kind, caring, a good listener, smart, and expedient. I could hear Cristina’s smile through the phone as I was explaining what I needed, and she took my concerns seriously. She is exactly the sort of human you want as the face of your practice, and Baylor OB/GYN is lucky to have her. Thank you, Cristina, for turning what had been a bit of a nightmare into a total win, and for your kindness.

Aaron Wilson, Patient Access Representative was recognized three times in one day! Here’s one of the comments.
Mr. Aaron Wilson, the one that took my ID at the nurse check in desk. He was so very kind and went above and beyond. I was so sick with COVID and still am. He came up to us in the waiting room and handed us two bottles of water and a Gatorade and said, “you will need to stay hydrated.” He did not have to do this but it was SO APPRECIATED!!! It’s those special little deeds that mean so much to patients and their families. You are so blessed to have such a compassionate employee that genuinely cares about others wellbeing.

To read more recognitions or submit a Caught You Caring for a co-worker, click here. Our dedicated patient access team members will celebrate Patient Access Week from April 2-8.

December 23, 2019

Since launching the Texas Children’s Patient Access Initiative, the organization continues to make great strides to ensure patients easily and conveniently get in the door to access our high quality services.

Due to the tremendous dedication of our faculty, staff and the collaborative solutions implemented over the last year, the organization has exceeded its FY19 P3 goal for patient access. While Texas Children’s targeted goal for Access to Care was to reach at least 686,280 provider completed appointments across the system, the organization exceeded that goal with nearly 692,000 appointments, equating to more than 5,000 additional provider completed appointments than originally anticipated.

“This impressive milestone reflects our commitment to improving access and the overall experience for every patient and family that comes to Texas Children’s for care,” said Senior Vice President and Patient Access Leader Richelle Fleischer. “It’s amazing to see how much we have accomplished on patient access in a relatively short period of time through our collaborative efforts. It has truly been a team effort.”

One of the many impactful changes benefiting patient families has been their ability to easily and quickly schedule their appointments online. To date, a total of 38,012 appointments have been scheduled online via MyChart and DocASAP.

In May 2018, Texas Children’s launched direct scheduling that allows current patients to schedule return appointments online through MyChart. Since its implementation, 31,246 visits have been scheduled online and many patients and their families describe the scheduling process as “easy and convenient.”

In addition to direct scheduling via MyChart, over 6,766 appointments have been made via DocASAP, Texas Children’s online scheduling partner. Offered in both English and Spanish, this online scheduling tool is available to new patients, current patients and referred patients at Texas Children’s three hospital campuses including our specialty care locations in Houston and Austin, and Texas Children’s Pavilion for Women.

Other patient access milestones

Texas Children’s implemented other enhancements to improve patient access across the system. Below is an update on where we are today:

  • MyChart activations: Texas Children’s continues to see improvement in the number of patients signing up for MyChart. In October 2017, the organization had approximately 61 percent of distinct patients sign up for MyChart. As a result of system wide efforts to raise patient awareness and engagement, we have now exceeded 72 percent activation rate for MyChart throughout the system as of November 2019.
  • Electronic Waitlist: Since implementing this MyChart feature that automatically sends texts and email notifications when appointments become available sooner, 6,508 patients accepted an appointment on average 22 days earlier than their prior appointment. The total patient volume includes Texas Children’s Pediatrics (TCP) including our Austin and College Station locations, all subspecialties, sleep studies and therapies.
  • Reminder texts: In October 2019, Texas Children’s hit a record low no-show rate of 9.7 percent for provider completed appointments. With the upcoming migration of mobile numbers of almost 10,000 patients from the “home” field to “mobile” fields, these patients will be automatically opted into text message reminders, further scaling the impact of the 7-3-1 messaging strategy where patients can confirm or cancel an appointment via text message at seven days, with additional 3-day and 1-day reminders prior to the appointment day.
  • Space Sharing: In September 2018, Texas Children’s launched a pilot program to explore clinical space sharing between specialty clinics in Wallace Tower. This initiative has helped the organization identify underused or vacant spaces that can be used by clinics in need of additional space for appointments. Since go-live, 27 requests have been approved which translates to 292 completed patient appointments.
What’s next for patient access?

For FY20, Texas Children’s Patient Access Steering Committee will launch Access 3.0 with initiatives targeting three new areas of focus that will build upon the organization’s Access 1.0 and 2.0 successes.

  • Provider expansion – New teams will investigate opportunities for digital scribes and broaden the scope of the Space Utilization tools to Texas Children’s West Campus and The Woodlands.
  • MyChart Patient Optimization – Renewed focus will continue on Online Scheduling via MyChart to ensure the door remains open for patients to book appointments online for any Texas Children’s subspecialty clinic, not just those in which they are returning patients. In collaboration with the Online Scheduling workgroup, the All-In team launched Pre- at TCP’s and Women’s Services areas and will go live with this feature at all TCH Ambulatory Clinics.
  • Template Consistency – To maintain and enhance ambulatory capacity improvements from our Patient Access 1.0 and 2.0 initiatives, a team will be working throughout the new fiscal year to ensure template consistency within and across services.

In addition to these areas, Access 3.0 will support the work of our E-Health and Referrals teams.

Want to learn more about patient access efforts? Click here to view our Resource Page.

July 1, 2019

Since implementing Texas Children’s Patient Access Initiative, Texas Children’s continues to make great strides to ensure our patients and their families get in the door easier to access our high quality services.

One of the many impactful changes benefitting patient families has been their ability to easily and quickly schedule their appointments online as a result of new features the organization has implemented. To date, more than 10,000 appointments have been scheduled online via MyChart and DocASAP.

In May 2018, Texas Children’s launched direct scheduling that allows current patients to schedule return appointments online through MyChart. Since its implementation, over 7,909 visits have been scheduled online and many patients and their families describe the scheduling process as “easy and convenient.”

“I was surprised that Texas Children’s now offers this option,” wrote a Texas Children’s family. “It was very convenient and the process for scheduling appointments was very simple and streamlined.”

In addition to direct scheduling via MyChart, over 2,814 appointments have been made via DocASAP, Texas Children’s online scheduling partner, since November 2018. Offered in both English and Spanish, this online scheduling tool is available to new patients, current patients, and referred patients at Texas Children’s three hospital campuses including our specialty care locations in Houston and Austin, and Texas Children’s Pavilion for Women.

“I am excited about the progress we’ve made to better serve our patients and their families,” said Sarah Ringold, assistant director of Perioperative Business Operations at Texas Children’s and project manager for the online scheduling team for Patient Access. “It is amazing to be able to offer families the flexibility of scheduling online, and to continue to improve the online scheduling tool to make it more and more effective for our patients.”

Other patient access milestones

Texas Children’s implemented other enhancements to improve patient access across the system. Below is an update on where we are today:

  • MyChart activations: Texas Children’s continues to see an increase in the number of patients signing up for MyChart. In October 2017, the organization had approximately 61 percent of distinct patients sign up for MyChart. As a result of system wide efforts to raise patient awareness and engagement, we have now exceeded over 74 percent activation rate for MyChart throughout the system as of June 2019.
  • Electronic Waitlist: Since implementing this MyChart feature that automatically sends texts and email notifications when appointments become available sooner, 3,794 patients have accepted an appointment on average 39 days earlier than their prior appointment. The total patient volume includes Texas Children’s Pediatrics (TCP), all subspecialties, sleep studies and therapies. Due to its success, TCPs in Austin and College Station will go live with this convenient electronic tool by the end of the summer.
  • Referrals: The referrals team continues to work through enhancements to the referral process in an effort to improve patient access. In April and May 2019, Texas Children’s received over 6,000 referrals from external providers that were processed through the central transcription team – the highest number of referrals from external providers to date. In addition, TCP surgical referrals and medicine referrals referred to Texas Children’s specialties also reached their highest levels at 91 percent and 87 percent, respectively. Current initiatives are in process to increase scheduling conversion and appointment capture rates for various specialties.
About Texas Children’s Patient Access Initiative

Launched in August 2017, Texas Children’s Patient Access Initiative is an on-going, collaborative effort to improve patient access across the organization. Since then, Texas Children’s has made significant progress to ensure patients easily and conveniently get in the door so we can provide the care they need, when they need it.

Click here for a list of other tools and features we’ve implemented across the system to improve access, care coordination and patient experience at Texas Children’s.

May 14, 2019

EpicCare Link is a web-based provider portal for Texas Children’s that gives referring physicians and their staff secure and convenient access to the hospital’s electronic medical record (EMR).

Texas Children’s EpicCare Link can be used by:

  • Staff at practices that are not part of Texas Children’s but whose providers are active, courtesy or consulting members of the Texas Children’s Hospital medical staff.
    Community providers, including Texas Children’s adjunct medical staff and their staff.

Once registered and logged in to Texas Children’s EpicCare Link, referring physicians can access important information about their patient’s care at Texas Children’s, including discharge, consult and operative reports, imaging reports, lab results, medication use, and family history of their patient.

EpicCare Link users can also receive correspondence and messages from Texas Children’s physicians and can view and receive notifications about inpatient admissions, discharges, emergency room encounters, urgent care visits, and view upcoming appointments at the touch of a button.

For more information on EpicCare Link, click here.

Online and direct scheduling have become easier at Texas Children’s with the introduction of MyChart, an online patient portal application launched in 2018. To date, thousands of patients have used the free MyChart feature to schedule and manage their appointments, communicate with their doctor, access medical records, obtain lab results and request prescription refills. Learn more by visiting our 2018 virtual Annual Report.

May 6, 2019

Provider Connect gives referring physicians and their staff direct access to our resource team for questions and concerns about referrals or issues accessing or navigating a Texas Children’s service.

Since its launch in January 2019, Texas Children’s has had more than 400 touch points with providers.

The referral resource team at Texas Children’s is comprised of a director, a senior project manager and two access communication specialists who answer the phone. The team also has four members who intake approximately 5,000 referrals each month, equating to 60,000 physician referrals each year.

The team assists with the referral process, updates referring provider contact information and offers support for connecting to Texas Children’s, including accessing EpicCare Link, a provider portal that gives external providers secure, convenient access to Texas Children’s electronic medical record. This web-based tool is free and providers can sign up online.

Click here for more information about EpicCare Link.