February 6, 2018

Stephen Davis, a manager with Texas Children’s Pharmacy Department, was recently honored by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) New Practitioners Forum as one of six recipients of a distinguished service award.

The awards were presented at a reception during ASHP’s 52nd mid-year clinical meeting and exhibition in Orlando, Florida. The ASHP Pharmacy Practice Sections and New Practitioners Forum Distinguished Service Award recognizes a member whose volunteer activities have supported their mission and helped advance the profession.

For the past 75 years, ASHP has made efforts to improve medication use and enhance patient safety. The organization has more than 44,000 members including pharmacists, student pharmacists, and pharmacy technicians. ASHP represents pharmacists who serve as patient care providers in acute and ambulatory settings.

Davis is the residency program director for the Health-System Pharmacy Administration Residency at Texas Children’s. This program offers residency slots to students, residents, and pharmacists, to help them develop their clinical and leadership skills.

He is a former chair of the ASHP New Practitioners Leadership and Career Development Advisory Group, a faculty member for the ASHP manager’s boot camp, and is a member of the organization’s Commission on Credentialing as well.

He is the former chair of the Texas Society of Health-System Pharmacists Editorial Advisory Board, and a current member of its Education Affairs Council.

November 29, 2017

Information Services, the Cancer and Hematology Centers and Pharmacy recently partnered to successfully launch Epic Beacon, a new medical oncology module that gives physicians and other providers a better tool with which they can create personalized treatment plans and support care regimens based on standardized protocols. The outcome of such treatment plans and support care is a more efficient and effective way to follow each patient through outpatient doctor’s visits and inpatient hospital stays, easing the patient’s transition to lifetime, post-cancer care.

“This initiative has changed how we deliver care to some of our sickest patients,” said Cancer Center Director Dr. David Poplack. “With Beacon, we are able to provide more tailored treatment, more efficiently and at a decreased risk to our patients who receive some of the strongest medications.”

During the 18-month implementation process, about 600 treatment protocols were made electronic via Epic Beacon, which is fully integrated with Epic’s pharmacy and electronic Medication Administration Records (MAR) products, allowing oncologists to better track medications that have been dispensed and administered, including medications ordered outside of an oncology treatment plan.

In addition, Beacon, which is being used system wide where oncology patients receive chemotherapy, features decision support that can suggest protocols as well as dose-specific medication modifications based on chart data. It also tailors plans at the patient level, so medication orders can be created and queued up in advance of patient visits for cancer treatment.

“Using Beacon has been a culture change for the Cancer Center but well worth it,” said Julie McGuire, director of Enterprise Systems for Information Services. “It has taken real dedication from all teams involved as well as a tremendous amount of physician and nurse engagement.”

Dr. ZoAnn Dreyer, an oncologist with the Cancer Center, said Epic Beacon’s buildout and go-live process was smooth and seamless.

“Even Epic’s own representative was impressed, saying it was the best he has ever seen,” Dryer said. “And it’s worked well in clinic so far for sure!”

Other first impressions of Epic Beacon have been positive as well:

“I’ve never seen a project with as much dedicated physician support and I think that was a HUGE part of this project’s success!”
– Drew Willert, Information Services

“The success of the go-live and Beacon’s functionality is a direct result of a multidisciplinary team that demonstrated resilience, excellence and commitment to the overall success of the project.”
– Denise Tanner-Brown, Cancer and Hematology Centers

“I am so proud of what WE have done. I am so humbled by all of the outpouring of support from operational, Epic and IS leaders, as well as end users on the front lines.”
– Dr. Marla Daves, Cancer and Hematology Centers

October 31, 2017

The Texas Children’s Hospital Ukulele Choir cheered on our Houston Astros in the best way they know how, with the help of some very special patients!

Led by the Music Therapy Department and made up of Texas Children’s staff members, the choir led patients and staff from the Inpatient Rehabilitation Unit in a rousing rendition of “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” in support of the Astros’ appearance at the championship game.

The patients played and sang along with the choir demonstrating not only their enthusiasm for the Astros, but also the great strides they have made in their recovery at Texas Children’s.

Established in 2014, Texas Children’s Ukulele Choir is rooted in self-care and respite for staff members who work hard and endure much for our patients and families. It provides an opportunity for members to create positive moments and relationships within their work environment and outside of their immediate department. Since the choir is led by the hospital’s music therapists, patients and staff benefit from this form of therapeutic intervention intended to bolster positive moods and mindsets.

Once a month, the Ukulele Choir performs on inpatient units, high traffic areas of the hospital, as well as staff meetings and events. The choir also provides live environmental music throughout the hospital. Since its inception three years ago, the choir has grown from three to more than 30 staff members representing different areas of the hospital including Information Services, Nursing, Pharmacy and Child Life.

March 21, 2017

The Auxiliary Gift Shop recently opened its new location on the first floor of the Pavilion for Women.

The gift shop replaces the Pavilion Express gift shop near the Fresh Bistro and is conveniently located for patients, families, employees and volunteers just off the main lobby of the Pavilion for Women.

The shop features a variety of gifts, fresh flowers, candy, snacks and drinks. Its hours of operation are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday and noon to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

October 18, 2016

101916medstobedsinside640A case study of the “Meds to Beds” pilot project at Texas Children’s Hospital was featured online in the NEJM Catalyst, a health care management and strategy website from the New England Journal of Medicine.

“Meds to Beds” is a program led by the departments of Surgery and Pharmacy whereby post-surgical medications are delivered to a patient’s bedside by a pediatric pharmacist following ambulatory surgery. The pharmacist then counsels the family on the medication and answers questions the family might have.

“While we knew this program was needed and would enhance surgical outcomes for our patients, we didn’t realize the overall benefits in terms of patient experience and financial bottom line to the hospital,” said Dr. Larry Hollier, associate surgeon-in-chief for clinical affairs and surgical director of patient experience.

Ultimately, “Meds to Beds” resulted in positive patient satisfaction scores. One hundred percent of those surveyed were very satisfied with medication bedside delivery and 99 percent were very satisfied with for pharmacy education. In comparison, outside pharmacies received very satisfied scores in the 20 percent range for these questions.

“We are very proud of the service we are able to provide to our patients and families,” said Jeffrey Wagner, director of pharmacy services at Texas Children’s. “Our ability to improve patient care and experience is exciting, particularly as we look to expand our services and medication delivery program to other areas of the hospital.”

To read the case study, click here.

June 7, 2016

6816StephenDavis175Stephen Davis, a pharmacy operations manager at Texas Children’s, was recently honored by the Auburn Alumni Association, Office of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs, and the Office of Development as one of 14 recipients who received an Outstanding Alumni Achievement award.

This prestigious award recognizes recipients for outstanding achievements in their professional lives, personal integrity and stature, and service to the university.

“The Auburn Alumni Association is proud to be associated with these outstanding alumni, for both their achievements in their careers and their dedication to Auburn University,” said Jack Fite, president of the Auburn Alumni Association.”

Davis, who is also the program director for the PGY1/PGY2 Health-System Pharmacy Administration Residency, has demonstrated leadership and vision in advancing the practice and profession of pharmacy and improving patient care. He received the 2015 Pharmacy Leadership Award from the Texas Society of Health-System Pharmacists (TSHP). He has also been active in local, state, and national organizations. During his nearly six years of service at Texas Children’s, Davis has collaborated with colleagues to improve medication dose preparation safety, reduce medication waste, and enhance pharmacy productivity to ensure quality patient care.

Recipients were honored at a dinner and induction ceremony April 9 at The Hotel at Auburn University and Dixon Conference Center.

June 1, 2016

6116usergroup640Representatives from more than 15 institutions and leaders from Epic, Omnicell and Codonics attended a conference hosted by Texas Children’s Hospital on May 23 and 24. The meeting focused on the innovation, integration, and interoperability of systems used in the medication use process within the operating room.

The Department of Pharmacy, in collaboration with Anesthesiology and Information Services, invited these three vendors to share their recent innovations and hear the collective voice of users that run these systems together. The goals were to leverage technology to optimize patient care and to initiate collaborative and constructive conversation to make improvements in workflow and safety.

The discussions provided opportunities to discover new ideas, share lessons learned, and gain knowledge from one another.