September 8, 2017

Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands had an excellent turnout of families at its first celebration of Kids Eat Right Month.

Working together, Food and Nutrition, and Clinical Nutrition Services encouraged children and their families to create and enjoy their own food art. Children learned how to make their own snails, butterflies, or banana race boats using healthy foods.

Chef Luis also prepared an edible rainbow of colors to remind children the importance of eating various types of foods. Even the pickiest eaters couldn’t resist!

Educational material and hands-on learning opportunities also were available to help teach kids how to build a healthy plate.

August 22, 2017

Patients got a special treat last week when the Houston Texans cheerleaders paid them a visit and hosted their third annual mini Jr. cheerleading camp at Texas Children’s Hospital.

Equipped with fluffy pom-poms, T-shirts and hats, the cheerleaders spent an hour working with the patients on a dance routine, playing games, signing autographs and posing for photos. Excitement filled the room as the patients showed spirit for their hometown NFL team.

“It was such a wonderful surprise to be able to come today,” 11-year-old Gabriela Palacios said with a smile. “It’s a nice break from my daily routine here at the hospital.”

Following the camp, the cheerleaders visited neurology and neurosurgery patients at the bedside, bringing along pom-poms and autographed posters. For cheerleader Morgan O., the August 15 visit was something she had been wanting to do for a while. Being new to the squad last year, Morgan was not able to come to the camp. She was excited to learn she would have the opportunity this year.

“It is such an honor to be here today,” Morgan said. “I feel privileged to be part of these children’s lives even if it is for a short amount of time.”

Lesly Romero said the event meant a lot to her and her 3-year-old daughter, Briana Lopez, who has been an inpatient at Texas Children’s for almost two months.

“She hasn’t had the opportunity to get out and just have fun in a while,” Romero said. “So, this is just great.”

Click here to watch a video about the cheerleading event.

The goal of the partnership between Texas Children’s and the Houston Texans is to inspire children to lead healthier, more active lives through camps, programs and events all year long. Texas Children’s works alongside the Texans through community engagement and education programs to give Houston-area kids the tools necessary to make healthy choices throughout their lives. Last week’s mini Jr. cheerleading camp is just one of many of the exciting events we’ll take part in throughout the year. Click here to learn about some of the other ones.

August 15, 2017

“When we were at Texas Children’s for countless tests and procedures, wrestling for an elevator was the last thing we wanted to do,” wrote a Texas Children’s patient family. “Thank you to all of the staff and doctors who we saw taking the stairs. Seeing staff walk up or down a few flights of stairs was a kind gesture to free up space.”

This recent Caught You Caring comment is one of many inspiring messages submitted to Texas Children’s Patient Experience Team following the launch of the hospital’s Step Up for Patients First initiative two months ago.

“Since this initiative began, we have received an influx of positive comments from patient families,” said Maggie Weimer, senior project manager of Patient and Family Services. “Comparing third quarter metrics in FY16 and FY17, we have seen a 70 percent drop in negative comments related to elevator use at the Mark Wallace Tower.”

In June, Texas Children’s launched the Step Up for Patients First initiative, which encourages employees and staff to put patients and families first, from the time they arrive at work to the time they leave. This includes providing patients and their families priority access to the elevators to reduce unnecessary wait times.

“Long wait times had been a significant, ongoing concern for patient families who depend on the Wallace Tower elevators to take them to and from their clinic appointments,” said Katie Kalenda Daggett, director of Patient and Family Services. “Because of the positive feedback from patient families, we learned this simple act of putting patients first when moving about on our public elevators has made a strong and positive statement about our commitment to them.”

Furthermore, to support the Step up for Patients First initiative, 2,083 Texas Children’s employees participated in the StairWELL challenge during the month of June, while making physical activity a priority in 2017. Prior to the stairwell initiative, patient families waited up to 30 minutes for an elevator at Wallace Tower. With more employees taking the stairs, wait times have improved significantly, allowing patients and their families to arrive at their appointments with ease.

“As appointment volumes tend to pick up going into the school year, we want to encourage employees to be aware and step in to help our patient families who may need our guidance,” Weimer said. “We all represent Texas Children’s and our patients and families are counting on us to help them throughout their visit.”

Step Up for Patients First is part of a broader initiative that will include future improvement efforts, such as encouraging employees to assist those who are lost and need help with wayfinding and optimizing employee visibility of the Caught You Caring Program, an organization-wide initiative that recognizes employees for their every day acts of kindness and their above and beyond efforts to show they care for Texas Children’s patients.

The Patient Experience Team continually receives feedback from patient families – including employees and staff – about small changes that can be implemented system-wide to promote a positive patient experience.

If you have suggestions for improvements or any additional feedback, contact the Patient Experience Team at patientexperience@texaschildrens.org

July 25, 2017

In support of Patient and Family Services’ Step Up for Patients First initiative, 2,083 enthusiastic Texas Children’s employees participated in the StairWELL Challenge during the month of June. Participating employees made physical activity a priority by committing to take two to eight flights of stairs a day to improve the elevator experience for our patients and their families.

Texas Children’s Patient Experience Team received several comments from family members expressing positive feedback about the challenge.

“Thank you to all of the staff and doctors who we saw taking the stairs,” one grateful family member said. “The elevators are always crowded and wrestling for elevator space is the last thing you want to worry about when taking your child to multiple appointments. Seeing staff walk up or down just a few flights of stairs was a kind gesture to free up space.”

Director of Patient and Family Services Katie Kalenda Daggett said “because of the positive feedback from our patients and families, we learned this simple act of putting patients first when moving about on our public elevators has made a strong and positive statement about our commitment to them.”

Many employees said the challenge was a fun and healthy way to improve the experience for our patients and their families. According to a post-challenge survey:

  • 79 percent increased the number of minutes they were physically active
  • 57 percent improved their fitness level
  • 23 percent made new connections and became more social at work
  • 41 percent amplified unity to serve patients and families first
  • 66 percent expressed they had fun
  • 54 percent shared they now have a high commitment to taking the stairs

Several employees plan to continue the challenge. The Information Services team, for example, started Walk and Talk Tuesdays and Vertical Friday, which includes climbing 20 flight of stairs at the Feigin Center.

Departments across the organization amplified unity during the challenge by leading group stairwell climbs and exercise activities. Take a look at this short video to see challenge participants in action.

“We encourage all Texas Children’s employees to continue to be part of this collaborative process to reduce extended wait times at the elevators,” said Director of Benefits and Well-being Jill Fragoso. “It is important to remember Step Up for Patients First is part of a broader initiative to enhance patient experience across the hospital system.”

Want to achieve a personal fitness goal and help preserve the mission of Texas Children’s Hospital? Runners can enter the sold out 2018 marathon and half marathon races through the Chevron Houston Marathon’s Run for a Reason charity program.

Texas Children’s Hospital is an official charity for the Houston Marathon and Armaco Half Marathon, taking place on Sunday, January 14, 2018. The Run for a Reason program is a way for runners to run the race of their choice with a guaranteed entry – on behalf of a charity.

Running for Texas Children’s Hospital is not just about the race, it’s a promise to our patients. By signing up to run and fundraise on behalf of Texas Children’s Hospital, your donations will directly impact the lives of countless children. Your race will become the race for our patients who are too sick – sometimes too sick even to play outside. Your support will allow us to expand our care to even more children who need our help.

Make your promise and join the Texas Children’s Running Team today! For additional information and ways to get involved, click here.

Questions
Please contact Claire O’Malley at ext. 4-2685 or runforareason@texaschildrens.org.

July 5, 2017

It’s time to get active with the Houston Texans! Running of the Bulls 5K Run and Walk presented by H-E-B and TORO’s Kids 1K presented by Texas Children’s Hospital are back for 2017, and special early bird pricing is available now!

Early bird pricing ends on Friday, July 7 at 5 p.m., so register NOW to secure the best price available for this year’s event!

When: Sunday, September 17, 2017
Where: NRG Park
What: Competitive 5K Run: $30, Non-competitive 5K Run/Walk: $25, TORO’s Kids 1K: $20

You’ll get the full Texans experience at the Finish Line presented by Mattress Firm by running through the Houston Texans gameday bull tunnel and finishing on the floor of NRG Stadium for our post-race party! The party will feature free food and drinks, live music, giveaways, autographs from Texans celebrities, and more!

To register or for more information, click here.

June 20, 2017

As part of our commitment to improve the elevator experience for our patients and their families, our employees have enthusiastically participated in the StairWELL Challenge this month. To date, 1,982 participants have signed up for the StairWELL Challenge, completing two to eight flights of stairs each day.

It’s not too late to sign-up for the challenge! Click here to register. Commit to the challenge as an individual and encourage your co-workers to participate with you!

Check out what your peers are doing throughout the organization by clicking on the links below:

Accounting and Payroll Team at the Meyer Building
Texas Children’s Health Plan Team

Remember to share your StairWELL photos and videos with the Well-Being team at wellbeing@texaschildrens.org.

For more information about the challenge, visit the Well-Being page on Connect.