Connect Newsletter (Aug. 21, 2025)

Closing Soon: Enroll Now for Health Benefits and More 

Employees have until 11:59 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 22 to make any updates to their health, dental and other benefits for next year.

Current elections roll over automatically with the exceptions of flexible spending accounts, health savings account contributions and PTO sellback. These three elections are required to be made annually. If you don't take action, you'll have to wait until the open enrollment period in 2026 unless you have a major life change, such as getting married or having a baby.

New options include a prescription drug benefit called Capital Rx, which provides more choice and makes filling your prescriptions more convenient. The switch to Capital Rx gives you the flexibility to fill your medications at Cook Children’s pharmacies, as well as in-network national chains and independent pharmacies.  

Also, our Superior Vision plan now covers glasses and contacts every year for everyone on the plan. EdAssist streamlines the support for employees pursuing further education and professional development. And three new digital tools target mental well-being, sleep quality and exercise. Read more in the Cook Children’s Benefits Guide.

Enroll by going to Workday Benefits, accessing the Benefits and Pay app, and submitting the elections you make.

The benefits you choose during this open enrollment period will be effective from Oct. 1, 2025, through Sept. 30, 2026.

Questions? Contact the Benefits team at AskBenefits@cookchildrens.org. You can also contact the Benefits Center at 833-938-4154 between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.

Important System News: Please Review these Information Services Changes

We want to make sure everyone is aware of the following information:

M365 Rollout Information: Actions Required to Make the Move on Your Computer and Your Phone

The move from your old email service to Microsoft 365(M365) is underway and you will notice a significant change for those of you who access Cook Children's email on your mobile device. 

As part of this transition, we are moving from Exchange 2016 to cloud-based M365. This change brings enhanced access to Microsoft Office tools online, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook, along with limited access to OneDrive for file creation, sharing, and collaboration. Click here for this important update, including how to access M365 on your mobile phone. 

ServiceNow: It's Time

ServiceNow Employee Center has been live for almost 2 weeks now! The site & content are growing regularly to improve your experience. 

As a reminder, our old system only had 1 type of service ticket (Incident) but our new robust system has many!  

To help you pick the right catalog items for assistance, see the info below or go to the ServiceNow article (tip sheet) library for assistance: ServiceNow Knowledge

Find ServiceNow Employee Center on CookNet:

Incident: Report something that was working before & is not working at all or not working as it should

Ex: OnBase scanning into Epic is not working or Phones are out in clinic

Catalog Item: Something Is Broken or Create EMR Incident (in Epic)

Request: Ask for Hardware, Software, or Services

Ex: Ask for a new laptop or Adobe Pro access or training assistance

Catalog Item: Find Specific Items or use the new generic Request Hardware/Software or Services

Idea: Ask for something to be ADDED or CHANGED or REMOVED from existing applications

Ex: Add medications to an Epic order set or Add a field to XYZ report

Catalog Item:

• Epic Optimizations
• Workday Optimizations
• Idea Portal: (all other apps)
• LESS Optimizations 

Note: While the servicedesk@cook email has been disabled, you can still call Service Desk at 682-885-7999, but the new ServiceNow Employee Center is just a click away!

Dallas Love Field Airport Displays Art from Cook Children's Mental Health Initiative

Before you fly to your next destination, take a moment to view art created by our patients now displayed at the Dallas Love Field Airport. 

This art features pieces from the Children's Feelings are a Work of Art, a mental health initiative designed by Cook Children's Center for Community Health, to help teach kids and teens how to identify, manage and express their feelings. 

You can see 50 of these drawings on display until Sept. 30 near the airport's baggage claim area. 

Click here to learn more about the art display and see some of the artists' creations. 

Join us for the "Understanding Medicare Coverage" Webinar

During the webinar, a licensed Medicare advisor will cover:  

• Who is eligible for Medicare?
• The A, B, C, and D options for Medicare plans.  
• Differences between Medicare Advantage and Medicare Supplement insurance.  
• How to select the best Medicare plan for your needs.

Can’t make it live? Register for the webinar, and you’ll receive a follow-up email with the full recording, presentation slides, and a link to schedule a consultation with a Medicare advisor. 

Special Instructions for registration: Please complete all required fields to register. After submitting, you'll receive a confirmation email with details on how to join the webinar. If you don’t receive an email within 24 hours, contact Medicare Choice Group, kaylee.dutter@medicarechoicegroup.com for assistance.

Register for the webinar at: https://visit.medicarechoicegroup.com/cook-8-22

We look forward to seeing you there!

Small Baby Unit: Giving the littlest, most fragile NICU babies a fighting chance

For babies born before 28 weeks and those born with serious complications, the small baby unit adds an extra level of care, giving them a fighting chance for a bright future.

Check out our Doc Talk Podcast where we chat with neonatologist Hevil Shah, M.D., and Samantha Corkum, MSN, RN, RNC-NIC, Neonatal Program Coordinator, about the specialized care for the NICU's tiniest patients. 

Listen to the podcast here. 

Fall into Giving with Employees Care

The Cook Children's Health Foundation is wrapping up summer with fun ways to connect with co-workers and learn more about Employees Care. From games and giveaways to sweet treats and surprises, there's something for everyone. As an Employees Care donor, you can become an even bigger part of our patients’ journeys, making their experience at Cook Children’s even more magical.

See the full list of events across the system by visiting their page on CookNet.

Share Your Content with Us

Do you have any tips, ideas or content you would like us to know about? We want to hear from you! Please view our SharePoint site and email us at InternalCommunications@cookchildrens.org. 

Check our CookNet calendar for more system-wide events and to find more content about our employees and news you need to know, bookmark our Connect Newsroom website.