April 3, 2018

Don’t miss out on the fun at the second annual Texas Children’s Hospital and Houston Marathon Foundation Family Fun Run at Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands. Registration for the event ends at 5 p.m. Monday, April 23, or whenever we reach our maximum event capacity of 1,500 runners, so hurry and sign up if you haven’t already.

Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands will host the fun run at its campus on Saturday, May 5. The event will offer a 1-mile course and will begin at 9 a.m. Post-race activities will follow until 11 a.m.

Participants – including those who need walkers and wheelchairs – are welcome. There will not be prizes given to top finishers as all participants will receive an award for taking part in an event designed to educate and encourage Houston-area families to adopt active, healthy lifestyles.

Click here to register and learn more about the upcoming event.

Good luck and happy running!

March 13, 2018

In January, The Woodland’s Recognition and Reward Committee presented the inaugural Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands’ Shining Star Award to Dr. Andrew Chu with Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, and Aldrian Barrett, a unit clerical assistant with the hospital’s Emergency Center.

The award winners were described as being well deserving, demonstrating flexibility and attention to the care of our patients and staff, and exhibiting the hospital’s core values of leading tirelessly, embracing freedom, living compassionately, and amplifying unity.

Both winners were surrounded by a team of co-workers, leaders, and Recognition and Reward Committee members when they were presented with the award. Chu and Barrett received a plaque, personalized star badge reel, coffee shop treat, free lunch coupon, and a designated parking spot for the quarter. They also will have their pictures displayed on a wall in both the in-patient and out-patient buildings.

After months of planning, the committee members were proud to present the award that is similar to the “Best of the West,” an employee-recognition award given to employees at Texas Children’s Hospital West Campus. The committee decided on the name Woodlands’ Shining Star by hosting a campus wide contest. The committee received 87 submissions from staff from all areas. The winner of the contest was Ashanti Jackson, a respiratory therapist in the Pulmonary Diagnostic Lab.

The committee received a dozen nominations for the new award, which honors those who go above and beyond to provide exceptional care to our patients, families and staff in The Woodlands. The committee selected the top five based on the criteria and sent those names to executive leadership for final selection. The next award will be presented in April with the goal to nominate both a physician and staff member of every quarter.

If you would like to nominate someone, please click here.

December 20, 2017

Texas Children’s Cancer and Hematology Centers patients and their families at Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands got to shake hands with an extra special visitor last week thanks to the centers’ clinical director Dr. Ricardo Flores.

Flores and Houston Astros shortstop Carlos Correa are close friends, both being from Puerto Rico and organizing joint relief efforts after their homeland was battered by two hurricanes earlier this year. As a favor to Flores and as the result of a genuine desire to brighten a child’s day, Correa stopped by Texas Children’s newest community hospital on December 15 and spent a few hours shaking hands, posing for pictures and signing autographs.

“This time of year should be a time of happiness for children,” Correa said. “Hopefully I can be a distraction for them, even if it’s for a short time.”

Watch a video of Carlos Correa’s visit to Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands.

Several employees who saw the famous baseball player interact with the patients teared up and said Correa’s time at the hospital definitely made a difference.

“These kids have been through so much,” said Ashlee Krueger, a nurse with the Cancer Center. “It’s very touching to see them smile, laugh and have some fun.”

Flores said he is grateful to be able to arrange such an extraordinary visit for his patients, their families and some of the hospital’s employees.

“These children are the real champions,” he said. “They know what it means to fight and strive to stay strong each and every day.”

Click here to read more about Flores’ efforts in Puerto Rico.

December 12, 2017

Dr. Paul Sirbaugh, chief of Pediatric Emergency Medicine since 2012, has been named chief medical officer for Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands, effective January 2, 2018. Sirbaugh will succeed Dr. Charles Hankins, who will be joining CHRISTUS as system senior vice-president of pediatrics and president and chief medical officer of The Children’s Hospital of San Antonio.

Sirbaugh brings a wealth of expertise and experience to this leadership role. In addition to a medical degree and board certification in pediatrics and pediatric emergency medicine, Sirbaugh earned a Masters of Business Administration degree from Rice University. He has served as the pediatric medical director for the City of Houston Emergency Medical Service for the past 22 years and is an extremely broad-based clinician, medical educator and clinical investigator. He currently serves as associate professor of pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine.

“We are extremely fortunate to have a proven leader of Dr. Sirbaugh’s impeccable character and abilities step into this important role,” said Texas Children’s Physician-In-Chief Dr. Mark W. Kline. “We thank all of you, but especially our Woodlands-based faculty and staff, for joining us in congratulating Dr. Sirbaugh and welcoming him to The Woodlands community.”

December 5, 2017

A little over a year ago, Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands Outpatient Building opened its doors to the Greater Houston area and beyond. Since then, the ever-growing team of providers and support staff have seen 50,000 plus patients in the outpatient areas and received numerous compliments from the patients and family members they serve.

“Our first year has been packed with many new and exciting opportunities,” said Julie Barrett, director of outpatient and clinical support services for the Outpatient Building. “We have grown substantially, adding new service lines, providers and staff, and we have established a culture that exemplifies our mission to provide the best possible care for our patients and their families.”

Designed with a “spirit of the woods” theme to incorporate the lush, woodsy landscape that surrounds it, the six-floor, 209,973-square-foot Outpatient Building opened in October 2016 housing almost 20 areas of specialized care including cardiology, sports medicine, neurology and hematology/oncology. A dedicated medical staff at the facility works in conjunction with the Texas Children’s system to provide top-notch medical care.

Connected to the almost year-old Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands on floors one and two, the Outpatient Building offers a fresh, new kid-friendly environment to families seeking the best pediatric care for their children. A state-of-the art sports physical therapy gym is on the first floor, check-in and check-out stations resembling a child’s club house are at the entrance of each clinic, and spacious exam rooms and provider work stations line many of the building’s halls.

Susan Niles, a senior athletic trainer with Sports Medicine, said the Outpatient Building’s Sports Medicine staff has grown substantially since it starting seeing patients a year ago, adding nurses, physical therapists, athletic trainers and a sports dietitian. Such growth has allowed the staff to provide quicker access to therapy services, Niles said. It also has provided opportunities for research.

“Using technology from the motion analysis lab, we have launched a research project that we hope will provide breakthrough information on concussions,” Niles said. “We are the only campus with a motion analysis lab and we are excited to use the technology for our patients.”

Ambulatory Services Therapy Manager Jay Mennel said another unique service offered in The Woodlands comes by way of an Alter-G treadmill, an anti-gravity treadmill utilized by sports therapy patients, he said. Such a specialized service combined with other specialty clinics led to the therapy staff completing more than 18,000 outpatient visits during the Outpatient Building’s first year in operation.

“We have some fantastic physicians and great senior leadership at The Woodlands, which has helped our department grow at an exceptional rate,” Mennel said. “We hope to continue to grow this next fiscal year.”

Heather Jordan, a staff nurse in Outpatient Surgical Services, Melanie Garcia, a medical assistant with Plastic Surgery, and Yvonne Barham a staff nurse with Diabetes and Endocrine, all said they have seen tremendous growth in their areas and that they have seen patients from all over Texas and surrounding states.

“Our patients have come from Nacogdoches, Lufkin, Bryan/College Station, Corpus Christi, Port Arthur, and Louisiana,” Barham said. “Many of the local residents have stated how happy they are to not have to travel for their regular office visits.”

Garcia agreed and said patient experience is something that everyone at The Woodlands Outpatient Building takes to heart. “We go above and beyond on a daily basis to make sure every patient feels special,” she said. “We are always improving, always compassionately serving each other and our patients.”

When asked what’s next, leaders, providers and staff point to continued growth and involvement in The Woodlands community.

“Now that we are here and have established workflows, processes and procedures, we can begin to work on things such as more access to patients and families, and staff being more involved in the community,” said Shawnda Kelley, ambulatory manager of various service lines at the Outpatient Building. “I am happy and proud to be a part of this new beginning and can’t wait to see what’s next.”

It’s beginning to look a lot like the holidays at Texas Children’s. The annual tree lighting ceremonies kicked off the season of joy with Santa and Mrs. Claus spreading holiday cheer to patients and their families.

On November 30, Senior Vice President Tabitha Rice and Nancy Baycroft, president of The Auxiliary to Texas Children’s Hospital, kicked off the tree lighting event on The Auxiliary Bridge. Within seconds, the bright lights magically turned on and Santa’s HO HO HO could be heard as he walked down the hallway bearing gifts. Every child received a stuffed holiday bear. Santa also visited patients who were not able to leave their rooms. St. John’s School Choir sang holiday carols to more than 50 patients and their families.

Santa Claus also spread holiday cheer to more than 145 guests at the inaugural Tree Lighting event at Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands. Chief Medical Officer Dr. Charles Hankins delivered the welcome speech and Vice President Trent Johnson thanked the event sponsors, Newfield Exploration and The Woodlands Art Council, and wished everyone good cheer. Children took photos with Santa and participated in fun activities including making holiday ornaments and picture frames.

Approximately 8,000 people attended the 10th annual Tree-Lighting Celebration in the courtyard at LaCenterra at Cinco Ranch on November 18. Three-year-old Paris Ndu, a patient at Texas Children’s Hospital West Campus, had the honors of lighting the 30-foot Christmas tree to kick off the holiday season.

With the holiday season upon us, there’s plenty of cheer left for patients, families and employees. Be sure to check out one of these holiday gatherings on your clinic floors and get in the holiday spirit.

  • Thursday, December 7 – Gingerbread house making (10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in The Zone)
  • Thursday, December 7 – Storybook Theater with Elsa (3 p.m., The Woodlands campus lobby)
  • Monday, December 11 – Junior League Big Santa Event (1 p.m. in The Zone)
  • Friday, December 15 – Bennett’s Bears visit fifth-floor inpatient (The Woodlands)
  • Tuesday, December 19 – Santa visits patients (1 p.m., West Campus)
  • Thursday, December 21 – Holiday Piano & Violin Duo (11:30 a.m. The Woodlands campus lobby)
  • Friday, December 22 – Bennett’s Bears visit clinic floors (10 a.m., West Campus)
October 31, 2017

Thanks to the generosity of donors far and wide, Texas Children’s Hospital has reached a significant milestone in its Promise Campaign. As of the end of September, donors had contributed $408.9 million, pushing the organization ever closer to its $475 million fundraising goal. The amount raised during fiscal year 2017 alone – $124.7 million – is a new annual high for the hospital’s fundraising team.

This record-breaking year coincides with a rebranding of the team that leads these efforts – the Office of Development is now the Office Philanthropy. “Changing the name from development to philanthropy better defines what we do, which is less transactional and more about the creation and sustainability of a strong and active base of supporters who are dedicated to advancing Texas Children’s mission,” said Amber Tabora, Senior Vice President of Philanthropy, Marketing and Public Relations.

“We are so grateful to our generous donors, volunteers and friends in the community, and to the Office of Philanthropy team, who are all working together to ensure the campaign’s success,” said Michael C. Linn, president of Texas Children’s Board of Trustees. Linn and his wife, Carol, serve as co-chairs of the Promise Campaign, which was launched more than seven years ago.

This major fundraising effort ensures that Texas Children’s can expand to serve even more children who need the highest quality care and can anticipate what our patients’ needs will be in 5, 10 and even 20 years. Funds raised through the campaign are being dedicated to five key initiatives:

Legacy Tower
The new Legacy Tower, scheduled to open in the spring of 2018 will add 640,000 square feet of space to our Main Campus, allowing the hospital to respond to an urgent need for the expansion of critical, surgical and cardiac care services.

Charity Care and Hospital Priorities
Funding for this area supports the advancement of Texas Children’s mission, providing care for all patients regardless of their families’ ability to pay, bridging the gap for un- and under-compensated care, and providing resources to address the hospital’s most pressing needs.

Endowed Chairs
Not a day goes by when Texas Children’s renowned physicians and scientists are not being recruited by other institutions around the world. Funding for endowed chairs enables us to recruit the brightest and best and keep them here.

Divisions and Centers of Excellence
Texas Children’s specialty services are ranked consistently in the top 10 for pediatric hospitals throughout the country. Funding for divisions and centers of excellence like allows us to enhance and expand our existing programs and develop new ones to address our patients’ ever-evolving needs.

Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands
The 548,000-square-foot dedicated pediatric hospital – our second community hospital – expanded Texas Children’s footprint in The Woodlands to better serve the growing communities north of Houston.

“The success of the Promise Campaign depends not only on monetary donations, but also on longstanding relationships with people who believe in the mission of Texas Children’s,” said Linn. “These relationships are what sustain the great work that is being done at the hospital to help children from our own community and beyond.”

The Office of Philanthropy cultivates these partnerships through education, attentive stewardship and appropriate solicitation. The gifts received as a result of this work – no matter how big or small – can be life-changing for our patients, families and staff.

For more information about the Promise Campaign, click here.