August 11, 2016 | (0) Comments

Recently, U.S. News and World Report released its 2016-2017 Best Children’s Hospitals rankings and honor roll. Most of you know that Texas Children’s Hospital maintained its ranking of fourth in the country out of nearly 200 pediatric institutions and that for the eighth straight year, Texas Children’s Hospital is on the Best Children’s Hospital Honor Roll.

We are consistently among the top children’s hospitals across all 10 subspecialty areas measured in the survey. In fact, we have six services ranked among the nation’s top five in their respective subspecialties. Of course we’re proud of this accomplishment, but there’s more to think about than just the numbers when you look at the rankings. We appreciate that there is a certain level of rigor involved in the quality measurements for pediatric hospital rankings.

Consider this. When U.S. News began its Best Hospitals list in 1990, the pediatric rankings were 100 percent reputational for more than 15 years. So the rankings were based squarely on a survey of pediatricians and pediatric specialists across the country who simply listed the children’s hospitals they preferred.

U.S. News shifted its focus in 2007 to make the pediatric survey more data driven, and over the years, the emphasis on the reputational sample from physicians continually decreased as the focus on quality increased. Now, reputation only accounts for 15 percent of a pediatric hospital’s score. While quality (i.e. outcomes, safety and experience) now accounts for 33 percent of our survey score. If you think about the fact that we continue to score better within our respective services as the rankings focus more on quality, you can’t help but appreciate how we continue to measure up.

Our rankings reflect our commitment to providing exceptional care for our patients and their families. Our patients drive our excellence and fuel our passion for what we do at Texas Children’s. They inspire us to dream big, to innovate and make new discoveries that elevate patient care and advance medicine. So when we are recognized as the best children’s hospital in Texas and the Southwest – and one of the very best in the nation – we can be confident that it is based on the things that matter most to our patients – high quality care and safety measures, exceptional experiences and outstanding patient outcomes.

Over the next several months, you will see Texas Children’s advertisements, billboards and videos like this one touting our U.S. News ranking. Your friends and family will see them too, and when they ask you about Texas Children’s, share our story with them. Let them know what’s really driving that number. Let them know how intensely focused we are at Texas Children’s, not on that ranking, but on our exceptional standards that earn us the top rankings time and again.

December 23, 2015 | (2) Comments

Last week, as I was thinking about my Christmas message to you, I of course thought about all the things the season typically means – family, beloved traditions, lots of good food and opening that perfect gift. But over the last few weeks, I’ve been thinking a lot about gifts much greater than anything that fits beneath a tree. In particular, I thought about what a gift it is for us to be able to be here for children when they need us. This time last year, we couldn’t always do that.

Like most years around this time, our patient volume was high, but last year we reached historic highs – at or beyond our 650-bed capacity throughout November and December. On many days we reached a point when we simply had to deny children the opportunity to receive care at Texas Children’s. In fact, in November 2014 we denied 101 hospital transfers.

Denying a patient who is being transferred from another hospital is heartbreaking. These are not low-acuity patients who walk into our Emergency Center with mom. When another hospital attempts to transfer a child to Texas Children’s, that facility has assessed that the patient is so critically ill that he or she needs the comprehensive care that only Texas Children’s can provide. Having to say no to children who needed us last year is not something any of us want to see happen again.

That is why we launched the Promise Campaign to build a new community hospital in The Woodlands and a new tower here in the Texas Medical Center. But the children who need us now cannot wait until that new space is available. We need to be prepared for the high-volume season that is now upon us. And that’s where all of you play such an important role. Our leaders, physicians, nurses and staff have been working intently and strategically for months. We assessed our previous approach to patient flow decision-making, and we created a new structure.

We now have rotating teams of operational leaders and physicians focused on patient volume every day. We created a “real-time demand and capacity” process to manage patient census, so that we assess patient flow at three pivotal points daily and can more accurately forecast bed capacity. We’ve increased acute care capacity at the Main Campus and at the West Campus, and perhaps most impactful is that we’ve shifted the way we think. For example, we no longer approach the PICUs at the Main Campus and the West Campus as separate units – we think systematically about these units and consider the total capacity between them when we make decisions about the best place to send a child for care.

We’ve created interdisciplinary roles dedicated to patient flow, and our executives, physicians and unit leaders are rounding and asking front-line staff, “How are things? What do you need?” And we’re making sure the support is where it’s needed, when it’s needed. This focus and teamwork is what allowed us to continue receiving patients last week when we peaked at a census of 691. We were still able to say yes to families and children who needed us when others shut their doors due to lack of capacity.

This is huge, and it’s important. And in many cases, it’s crucial. What you are doing, what you are dedicated to accomplishing, is working – and because of the effort everyone is making together, we can care for these children at Texas Children’s. For many of these families, there is no greater gift than the moment they learn we have a bed available for their child.

I truly wish that no child ever has to be in the hospital during the holidays, but my greater hope is that if they do, Texas Children’s can be there to care for them and ensure the best possible outcome so that they can see a better Christmas next year. That is our gift – during the holidays and every day. Thank you for all you’re doing to ensure we can continue to offer that gift.

I wish you all happy holidays and a merry Christmas.

December 10, 2015 | (10) Comments

Each fall, we ask you to get the flu shot to protect yourself and our patients against a potentially deadly infection. As many of you who have worked in other health care organizations know,  getting a flu shot is very often mandatory at  any place else that provides care.

But at Texas Children’s, we have always felt that people who work here are innately driven to do the right thing for our patients. Therefore,  our approach to  flu vaccinations  has always been very  simple – it’s the right thing to do for our patients, and we’re all here to do the best we can by our patients. That means getting vaccinated against the flu so that we have the best chance possible at keeping our patients healthy.

Even U.S. News & World Report recognizes that the rate of flu vaccine compliance at an organization is an indicator of the quality and safety of its environment. That is why they have now included  flu vaccination compliance as one of the measures in their annual best children’s hospitals assessment. While our driver for encouraging you to get vaccinated isn’t primarily about our U.S. News ranking, I can’t fathom that one of the nation’s top children’s hospitals would ever struggle to get complete compliance with flu vaccination.

We ask that you get vaccinated against the flu to protect yourself and to protect those around you who  depend on you to be healthy. When you’re healthy, the patients in our care – children and women – have a much better chance of having a better outcome . Being healthy also allows you to be here for your team and co-workers during one of our busiest times of the year.

I realize that  some people have very strongly held beliefs against getting a flu shot. But  this is so critical. We need everyone at Texas Children’s  to get vaccinated by December 31. Encourage your colleagues to do the right thing, make sure everyone in your family is vaccinated, and educate those around you about getting the flu shot.

This is not about us. It’s about the people we care for. I’m not asking you to do it for you, or me for that matter. I’m asking you to do it for our patients. Please take this responsibility to heart – we owe this simple act to our patients and their families.

Flu vaccinations are free and available in Employee Health at our Main and West campuses. If you receive your vaccination elsewhere, your Texas Children’s insurance will cover the cost. Please call Employee Health at Ext. 4-2150 if you have questions.

 

November 3, 2015 | (24) Comments

A few months ago I was sitting with Amber Tabora and Angela Hudson, leaders in our Marketing/PR Department, and I told them I had an exciting idea. As an organization, we had lots of great things happening: tremendous, rapid growth of our workforce and patient volume, three huge capital projects underway, and everyone was working at full throttle, and had been for quite some time.

I said, “Guys, let’s do something big. Let’s get out there and try to reach every Texas Children’s employee and show them how much they are appreciated.” Essentially, I wanted to celebrate who we are, all the amazing things we do together every day and everything that makes our organization’s culture so special.

Together, we came up with the One Mission, One Culture, One Amazing Team events – seven hospital-based celebrations. But I didn’t want to stop there. I wanted to get out and see every Texas Children’s team member at all 73 locations throughout Greater Houston. I told Amber and Angela that it had always been my dream to go on a tour and visit all of Texas Children’s locations within 24 hours. Yes, I really said within 24 hours. They were all in—at least, until I added that part about doing it all in one day.

Of course, we’ve grown much too big to see all of Texas Children’s in a single day. It actually took 10 days and about 80 hours, but we did it! After seven One Mission, One Culture, One Amazing Team events at the Main Campus, West Campus and Nabisco building, we embarked on a whirlwind, 73-stop One Amazing Team tour. Over the course of three and a half months, we visited all of Texas Children’s locations throughout the community, and it was better than anything I ever dreamed.

Click here for the One Amazing Team tour gallery. 

Traveling with a core team of 10 people, we covered about 750 miles on a bright blue, fish-themed Texas Children’s shuttle bus, and we met nearly 1,800 staff and employees. I’ll admit it’s difficult to make time to do something like this – we spent full days on the road – and it takes a tremendous amount of time and energy to travel from place to place. But this tour is hands down one of the best things I’ve ever had an opportunity to do. The investment of time and energy was invaluable, and I enjoyed every minute of it.

It was quite an experience to see up close and in person the amazing impact and imprint of Texas Children’s. Many times throughout this journey I wished I could take the entire Texas Children’s team along with me so each one of you could experience what I did. Because it’s not until you visit our locations all over the city that you can even begin to appreciate how much Texas Children’s is doing to change and advance care for children and women.

At every stop, I saw the shared pride and commitment of all the physicians and employees. I talked to practice managers about the families they serve, and I learned about ideas they’ve implemented to extend our reach and broaden access to health care in their communities. I learned about all the ways, big and small, that so many people are leading the way to ensure our patients’ sometimes complex social and clinical needs are met.

It moved me to see how we are serving so passionately in underserved communities, providing families and children with options that would otherwise be beyond their reach. I spoke with parents and kids, and I heard how their care providers, our people, are like members of their families. And the best part? People at every location told me about their close-knit teams – amazing teams – and I saw over and over how they embody and embrace our fabulous culture.

This is an incredible organization, and all of you are really special. You have heard me say that many times, and honestly, we probably all say it so much that sometimes it may seem trite. But it’s really quite remarkable that we are a workforce of 11,000 people with such diversity of interests and experiences, skills and beliefs. And yet, we have such indisputable passion for serving our one mission.

I’m truly humbled by all of the employees I met along the way who have taken the time to let me know how much they appreciate my stopping by to meet them and their teams. And of course everyone asks, “Are you going to do this again?” Without a doubt, yes. Just maybe not quite as soon as next year … In the meantime, continue your work of serving our families, and know that I appreciate everything you do. And most importantly, remember that no matter how big we get, the contributions each of you makes are valued. Each one of you is essential to our mission, and together, we will always be one amazing team.

Stay tuned for a video of all the highlights from the tour.  Until then, here’s a gallery of some of my favorite moments on the road: One Amazing Team tour photo gallery.