Growing Together: Cook Children's Unveils Plan to Expand Critical Care to Meet Community Demand
To keep pace with current and projected community growth, Cook Children’s Fort Worth is preparing to expand and enhance its campus with a 10-year master plan featuring a new 700,000-square-foot medical tower, currently referred to as the West Tower. The plan ensures Cook Children’s can continue caring for the community, as well as the children across the region and state who depend on us—now and for generations to come.
Halloween Hoopla, our annual event featuring costumes and employee skits, was a smashing success, with some creative skits featuring minions, trolls, Swifties, The Wizard of Oz, and more. View photos and a video here.
Prosper Boo Bash: Colleagues and team members across Cook Children's Medical Center-Prosper dressed up for Halloween and handed out goodies to our amazing patients. We've posted photos on the Connect Newsroom. Click here.
VIDEO: Beetlejuice-Inspired Haunted House: Our Child Life Zone at Cook Children’s Medical Center – Fort Worth was transformed into a thrilling haunted house inspired by the iconic movie, Beetlejuice. Young patients were actively involved in creating this spooky experience, and they even joined in the fun to scare our staff. Missed it? We made of video of the mansion tour. Click here.
NICU's Cutest Costumes: Our tiniest patients in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) celebrated their very first Halloween in style! Families dressed their babies in adorable costumes, including a firefighter, a skeleton, and even a little Harry Potter. Click here for photos.
Making Magic: Trick or Treating with Our Patients. View photos of our teams handing out special treats for our patients and their siblings.
John Robertson, M.D., a Pediatric Pulmonologist in Prosper, and his team made history by performing what we believe to be the world's continuous bronchoscopy during exercise (CBE) on a pediatric patient. Instead of giving up on sports forever, this groundbreaking procedure helped 13-year-old patient Jessye Tout breathe easier while exercising.
Get ready for a festive evening of fun and holiday cheer at our annual Holiday Extravaganza. Join us on Saturday, Dec. 7, for a night of holiday activities, including a visit with Santa, outdoor games, live performances, and a spectacular fireworks show. Plus, we have one more surprise to light up the sky, but you will have to attend to find out more. The event is 3-7 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 7 in the front of Medical Center-Fort Worth.
What to Expect:
Santa’s Workshop: Visit with Santa and snap a photo.
Outdoor Games and Activities: Enjoy a variety of fun activities for all ages.
Live Performances: Catch live performances on stage.
Tree Lighting and Fireworks Show: The night will culminate in a spectacular tree lighting ceremony followed by a dazzling fireworks show.
Parking:
Employees: Please park in your regular designated garage.
Event Attendees: Please park in the 901 or 8th Avenue and Terrell garages or in the surface lots on Pulaski and Humboldt.
We can’t wait to celebrate the holiday season with you! Mark your calendars for Jingle Mingle events on Dec. 4 at Medical Center-Prosper, on Dec. 6, at Medical Center-Fort Worth and on Dec. 11 at Calmont.
Updates on Food Options at the Dodson
We want to share some news with you about the food we serve in the Dodson Specialty Building. Beginning Nov. 15, Peaks’ Treat Dodson and Prosper locations will be closed.
Starting Nov. 16, our Cook Children’s Food Services team will be operating a food cart on the first floor of Dodson, offering breakfast and lunch options. Prosper will have the usual food options located in the main café.
We are currently exploring future plans for the space and will keep you updated on any developments.
Two Million Views and Counting on New CookNet and the Connect Newsroom
Thank you for helping us reach more than two million views on our internal communications platforms. This accomplishment is more than just a number; it shows the success of our efforts to provide a vital hub with content that keeps you informed, inspired and connected.
We rolled out the updated CookNet site on July 24, making it the default home page for all employees. It has become the go-to resource for employees to learn about news, updates and announcements. Departments across the System have been empowered to make their own pages on the site featuring the information and images they believe are important.
The articles, videos, and photos on the Connect Newsroom provide an opportunity for in-depth reports about the people and work being done at Cook Children's. We are particularly excited when we are able to share photos and articles provided by employees, from dispatches from the Olympics in Paris, to pictures of the total solar eclipse.
Our goal is to help create a sense of community at Cook Children's –- celebrating achievements, recognizing contributions, strengthening our culture, and nurturing togetherness. And we want to help our employees to connect, collaborate, and celebrate with one another.
We're grateful for your continued support and engagement. We hope that you will continue to check the CookNet home page every day for the latest information and visit the Connect Newsroom to stay in the loop with all that is happening at Cook Children's.
U.S. News Rankings: Moving Forward in Data Analytics, Communications
The latest pediatric rankings from U.S. News & World Report awarded gold badges to seven specialties at Cook Children’s. Where do we go from here?
Our team in Quality Performance Improvement will be gearing up soon for next year’s rankings. In the meantime, they’re helping sort through the survey data. Healthcare analytics and communications have roles to play too. Find out more here about the collaboration and new data tools at Cook Children’s -- including a dashboard and sliding scale.
Holiday Help Unites Us
This is the season of giving and Holiday Help is a great opportunity to support a patient family.Please click here to read this special message from Jennifer Hayes,MDiv, BCC, Director of Spiritual Care
First Drug Diversion Symposium Draws More Than 120
Cook Children’s first-ever Drug Diversion Symposium drew more than 120 staff and leaders, who gathered to learn from those directly impacted by drug diversion. We learned from the perspective of a provider, an auditor/investigator, and a patient.
In addition, the system recently hired its first Drug Diversion Program Manager, Hope Whitfield, RN. The System Diversion Committee will continue its work to improve processes, advocate for better technology, and provide more education to support staff.
New Name, Same Program! - Build Healthy Habits and Earn Rewards with Personify Health (formerly Virgin Pulse)
Our employee wellness program, Virgin Pulse has a new name - Personify Health. You will start to see changes on the Personify Health website and app, but no action is needed on your part. The change to Personify Health will be complete by Jan. 1, 2025. Personify Health is designed for personalized engagement and fun challenges that support the health and well-being of our employees across the System.
Finding the Way Around Our Medical Centers Just Got Easier
We know navigating a medical center can be stressful for families, especially when they are focused on their child's well-being. That's why we're excited to announce a new feature on the MyCookChildren's app designed to make navigating our Prosper and Fort Worth Medical Centers easier than ever for patient families.
Introducing interactive, real-time maps right in the palm of your hand. The app now includes dynamic maps for both campuses, providing turn-by-turn directions to specific clinics, departments, and facilities, and even on-site amenities like restrooms, lactation rooms, and cafeterias. These improvements will help families reach their destinations quickly and easily, minimizing confusion and stress.
The simple and user-friendly interface allows Cook Children's families to: • Navigate indoors: Get around our multi-floor medical centers with our navigation that specializes in indoor positioning • Save their parking spot: Mark their parking spot upon arrival and find their car quickly when they leave • Search by category: Easily find locations by categories, such as "Food," and "Parking"
This new wayfinding tool is more than just a convenient feature; it's a reflection of our ongoing commitment to innovation and providing the top-notch care. Please encourage patients' families to download or update the MyCookChildren's app to take advantage of this helpful new feature. If you notice any issues or have suggestions for changes regarding the digital map, please take a moment to fill out the following form.
Five new clinical pathways have been approved and added to the Clinical Pathways website. Clinical pathways are essentially roadmaps for patient care. Each pathway is created by a team of experts who thoroughly research the latest medical evidence. They then outline a step-by-step approach to treating specific conditions that's tailored to the practices and equipment available at Cook Children's.
They are:
PICU Sedation and Pain Management for Mechanically Ventilated Patients
PICU Delirium Prevention and Treatment
Calcium Channel Blocker/ Beta Blocker Ingestion
Intralipid Emulsion Therapy for Drug Intoxication
Aberrant EBV
Events and Recognitions
Join the Veterans Group for 2024 Veterans Day Activities
The Tarrant Country Veterans Day Parade starts at 11 a.m. on Monday, Nov. 11 at the Panther Island Pavilion and the Cook Children’s Veterans Group (CCVG) will have a float. They would love to have Veterans and supporters on the float. Reach out to CCVGLeadership@cookchildrens.org if you’d like to join.
Please join the CCVG for a Red, White and Brushes guided painting event at 3 p.m. on Nov. 8 at the Family Support Meeting Center – A&B in the Medical Center-Fort Worth. (It's the painting pictured here.)
Staff members will go step-by-step to paint a Veterans/patriotic-themed 4x4 canvas, and will get to take it home. Snacks will be provided.
Sign up will close on Nov. 7. Space in Family Support is limited so participation is first come, first served. Here is the link. For employees who work remotely or at locations other than the Medical Center-Fort Worth, kits can be sent via mail or courier, and a video will be published with painting instructions.
Native American Heritage Month 2024
Native American Heritage Month honors the diverse cultures and histories of indigenous peoples in the US and its territories. We observe Native American Heritage Month in November to recognize the achievements and contributions of Native Americans, according to the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration.
Pressure Injury Prevention Contest
The Pressure Injury Prevention Committee is hosting a contest and it's underway now. How are you and your team working to prevent pressure injuries? Send in your creative contest submissions until Nov. 13. Submissions must be original and can be anything creative: a song, a poem, bulletin board, PowerPoint, bathroom banner, skit, etc. The contest is open to all clinical staff members.
The Compliance team developed a 20-question Scavenger Hunt that they are sure that you will find both entertaining and educational – all with the idea to encourage everyone to keep compliance at the forefront of your minds.
Click this link to begin. If you make it to the end, you will be entitled to a fabulous mystery prize.
Our People
Malcolm Louden: A Legacy of Philanthropy and Service
Malcolm Louden, a former board chair of the Cook Children’s Health Care System’s board of trustees and longtime champion of Cook Children’s and our Promise, died on October 15. He was 79.
Mr. Louden’s passion was to ensure that all children of Fort Worth and this region had access to the finest medical care in the nation. Cook Children’s honored his commitment, passion, and vision in by dedicating the simulation lab as the Louden Family Clinical Learning Center in December 2021.
“He undoubtedly played a pivotal role in shaping Cook Children’s into the world-class health care institution it is today. His dedication to the children in our communities has been exemplified through his generous gifts for state-of-the-art technology, treatments, creative therapies, as well as his time and effort," said Rick W. Merrill, President and CEO of Cook Children’s Health Care System.
We extend our deepest sympathies to Mr. Louden's family during this difficult time, including his son, Taylor Louden, M.D., who serves as Medical Director of Cook Children’s Emergency Department.
New Episode of Untold Stories: Paul Thornton, M.D.
In episode 3 of Untold: The Stories of Cook Children’s, we spend time with Paul Thornton, M.D. and learn how a kid from Ireland was told he needed a backup plan for his dream of becoming a doctor, yet ended up as one of the world’s leading experts in a rare disease. Hear Dr. Thornton’s incredible journey to the United States and his groundbreaking work on hyperinsulinism, a condition affecting only 80 to 120 babies in the U.S. each year.
"Beyond Blessed to Have Cook Children's Take Care of Me"
Caitlyn Moore’s first interaction with Cook Children's was as a baby fighting a life-threatening disease. Decades later, she is back after landing what she says is her “dream job” as staff accountant with Cook Children’s Health Plan.
Lynette Satterfield, RN, MSN, Specialty Clinic Pulmonary Trach/Vent Coordinator with Cook Children’s Medical Center-Fort Worth is retiring from the system on Saturday, Nov. 30 after 26 years of service to Cook Children’s. Thank you, Lynette, for your many years of dedication to Cook Children's Promise.
We encourage you to take a moment to send Lynette a farewell note or a congratulatory eCard by Nov. 29.
Deborah Ellis, CRNA,Nurse Anesthetist with Cook Children’s Physician Network, is retiring from the system on Wednesday, Nov. 20 after 36 years of service to Cook Children’s. We encourage you to take a moment to send Deborah a farewell note or a congratulatory eCard by Nov. 19.
Thank you so much for your service, Deborah! Enjoy your retirement.
Growing Together: Cook Children's Unveils Plan to Expand Critical Care to Meet Community Demand
John Robertson, M.D., a Pediatric Pulmonologist in Prosper, and his team made history by performing what we believe to be the world's continuous bronchoscopy during exercise (CBE) on a pediatric patient. Instead of giving up on sports forever, this groundbreaking procedure helped 13-year-old patient Jessye Tout breathe easier while exercising. 
Join Us for Our Annual Holiday Extravaganza
Updates on Food Options at the Dodson
Two Million Views and Counting on New CookNet and the Connect Newsroom
Holiday Help Unites Us
New Name, Same Program! - Build Healthy Habits and Earn Rewards with Personify Health (formerly Virgin Pulse)
Pressure Injury Prevention Contest
Curious about Compliance?
New Episode of Untold Stories: Paul Thornton, M.D.
"Beyond Blessed to Have Cook Children's Take Care of Me"
Lynette Satterfield, RN, MSN, Specialty Clinic Pulmonary Trach/Vent Coordinator with Cook Children’s Medical Center-Fort Worth is retiring from the system on Saturday, Nov. 30 after 26 years of service to Cook Children’s. Thank you, Lynette, for your many years of dedication to Cook Children's Promise.
Deborah Ellis, CRNA, Nurse Anesthetist with Cook Children’s Physician Network, is retiring from the system on Wednesday, Nov. 20 after 36 years of service to Cook Children’s. We encourage you to take a moment to send Deborah a farewell note or a congratulatory