Connect Newsletter (June 13, 2024)

Top Job: Emergency Medicine Physician Named to AMA Board of Trustees

This just in: Congratulations to Melissa J. Garretson, M.D. on being named to the Board of Trustees of the American Medical Association (AMA), the nation’s largest physician organization.

Dr. Garretson has more than 20 years of experience practicing as an emergency physician who specializes in pediatric medicine. She spent the first five years of her career in a small group pediatric practice before transitioning to pediatric emergency medicine at Cook Children’s. She is a graduate of Texas Christian University and received her medical degree from Mayo Medical School, now the Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine.

“It is an honor to be elected to represent my colleagues on the AMA Board of Trustees,” said Dr. Garretson. “Shaping the future of medicine is a responsibility that I will take on with great care. I will work tirelessly to address the issues important to physicians, so that we can focus on what matters most—our patients.”

Read more in a news release from the American Medical Association.

Lunch with Dad: How the Felans Find Moments for Magic at Work

What are you doing this Father's Day weekend? Jimmy Felan and his daughter Ashley Felan will probably take in a baseball game or go to the movies together.  During the work week, they are able to see each other often because they both work here at the Fort Worth campus of Cook Children's. Ashley, a Pharmacy Assistant, and Jimmy, a Building Maintenance Tech, meet for lunch at the Medical Center-Fort Worth about every other week. 

“Every so often I’ll have meetings or something at the Rosedale Office Building (ROB),” Ashley said. “And every time I walk in, people will say, ‘Oh it’s Jimmy’s daughter, Jimmy’s daughter is here!’ I love that, it’s really cute.”

Read their story on the Connect Newsroom.

Also, click here to see the adorable photos that employees have sent in for Father's Day. Send us more of your pics: InternalCommunications@cookchildrens.org.

Celebrating Juneteenth 2024

In honor of the Juneteenth federal holiday on Wednesday, June 19, the Black Organization for Leadership and Development (BOLD+) Employee Resource Group is hosting activities at Cook Children’s. Please see the Juneteenth page on new CookNet for some Juneteenth facts and resources. 

Join us for homestyle Southern favorites at the Over the Moon cafeteria in Prosper, featuring beef tips, baked chicken and fried catfish. The menu at Camelot Court in Medical Center-Fort Worth will feature Nashville hot fried chicken and smoked ribs. 

Child Life is hosting a “Freedom Walk” for patient families from 11 a.m. to noon. Participants will take 2.5 laps around the Atrium at Medical Center-Fort Worth. There will be arts and crafts set up too. The event is modeled after Ms. Opal Lee's annual Walk for Freedom, in which she leads a 2.5-mile walk to recognize the 2.5 years it took for the news and enforcement of freedom to reach the enslaved people in Texas.
 

Respect and Kindness: BOLD+ Lunch and Learn

Have you ever been labeled before people see you for who you truly are? Don’t put people in a box! Please tune in for an educational and informative virtual Lunch and Learn on June 19 when we'll be discussing what respect, kindness, and allyship look like for Black/African American employees. 

This event is being hosted by the Black Organization for Leadership and Development Employee Resource Group (BOLD+ ERG), one of the four inaugural ERGs we have here at Cook Children's. 

This is our seventh Lunch and Learn. The final event, at noon on Tuesday, June 25, will focus on cancer survivors and supporters. 

Join us on Zoom from noon to 1 p.m. on Wednesday, June 19. Here is the Zoom link. Please note that while the other lunch and learns have been on Tuesdays, this week's event is on Wednesday to correspond to the Juneteenth holiday.

Recap: This week, we hosted a virtual Lunch and Learn program focused on career success for women in the workplace. We are providing a recap of each week's conversation on the Connect Newsroom. Check it out here.
 

#ICYMI: New Website Dedicated to Cook Children’s Health Plan

The Texas Health and Human Services Commission recently announced it plans to deny Cook Children's Health Plan a new contract for the Medicaid STAR and CHIP managed care programs. While we’re actively fighting for this decision to be overturned, we have created a website where you can:

• Understand the situation and its impact
• Learn the latest updates
• Read the most recent news stories
• Watch videos featuring impacted CCHP Members
• Find important information for physicians/providers and Members

Please visit savecookchildrenshealthplan.com.  

Spreading the Word: Health Plan Employees Further Our Message with Spanish-Speaking Media

Special thanks to Yahaira Perez and Jenifer Infante from the Health Plan for helping share key messages with Spanish-language media this week, specifically Univision and Telemundo, about our fight to continue caring for our members who are a part of the STAR (Medicaid) and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).

Story on Univision

Story on Telemundo

This is a statement we shared with the news media:

We are deeply disappointed by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission's (HHSC) decision to deny our protest to remain in the STAR (Medicaid) and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). This procurement process has been flawed from the beginning and we will pursue every legal option available, including filing an immediate appeal. We are confident in the strength of our case and believe we will prevail.

We know every child's life is sacred, and we will continue to fulfill our Promise of improving the well-being of every child entrusted to our care and within our communities.

Shernette Kydd, Ph.D, Professional Engineer and Assistant Vice President of System Effectiveness 

Newsweek has named Cook Children's one of America's Greatest Workplaces for Women 2024. We're introducing you to some of the women who make Cook Children's such an amazing place.

Shernette Kydd, Ph.D., PE, MBA, CLSSMBB, LSSBB, CPHQ, LBC, isn’t afraid to face a problem head on. In fact, she welcomes them like a kid welcomes a visit to the candy store. 

“I call problems candy, and we have lots of challenges in health care, so we call it a candy store," she said. “Folks run from problems but, as engineers, we run to them.” 

And she’s yet to meet a problem she couldn’t overcome. Partly because of her extensive engineering education and experience, but mostly a result of the legacy of faith and perseverance left by her mother. After the death of her father when she was 8 years old, she watched her mother raise six children on her own, all the while modeling Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” That verse and her faith in God powers her perseverance and gives her the resolve to find the sweet solutions in every piece of “candy.” 

As an engineering student, she was often the only female in her classes. Today, only 24% of industrial engineers are women, but being a woman in a male-dominated industry hasn’t stopped her from reaching the top. 

At Cook Children’s, she has found a place where she can develop solutions that deeply impact people’s lives on a global scale. 

“It's like a dream job,” she said. “The goal is to solve problems, and health care is something that impacts everyone. Even though I'm here in Texas, the solutions we find within health care can impact medical systems globally, because you want to share your findings with others.” 

She is raising the next generation of problem-solvers, too. She and her husband have two children, both of whom have followed in their mother’s footsteps. Their daughter is a biomedical engineer and their son recently completed his bachelor’s degree in data science. 
 

Let's Go Mavs! Cheer Our Team to Victory with Cook Children’s Collaboration and Moments of Magic!

Suit up in your favorite Mavs gear and join us in supporting the team on all playoff days:  
• Friday, June 14 
• Monday, June 17 
• Thursday, June 20 
• Sunday, June 23 
Let's unite in a sea of blue and white, cheering on Luka, Kyrie, and the entire team. Together, we can be a powerful force behind their success! 

Presentation: Significant Safety Event Discussions: Unintended Surgery 

Join Matthew Carroll, M.D., MHA, for a Quality presentation titled, “Significant Safety Event Discussions: Unintended Surgery,” on Friday, June 21, 2024, in the Hochberger Auditorium. 

The same presentation with discussion will occur at 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 9 p.m. to accommodate those working different shifts. Free food will be offered at each presentation! You will receive 0.5 hours of CME ethics credit for attending. 

Please click here for more information on this important event.

PHOTOS: Hospitals Against Violence Event

At our Hospitals Against Violence event, employees, patient families, and visitors gathered in the Atrium at Medical Center-Fort Worth and learned about various types of violence, including domestic violence and firearm safety, as well as information about suicide prevention and situational awareness.

View the photos here.

Registration is Open for the Pediatric Endocrine Conference

Cook Children’s, in collaboration with Human Growth Foundation, is proud to present this educational program for primary care physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, nurses, pharmacists, and other health care professionals who care for patients with endocrine issues. Take advantage of this unique opportunity to network with your peers and learn from clinical experts. Register here.