Texas Children’s officially dedicates Lester and Sue Smith Legacy Tower
It’s been over a year since Lester and Sue Smith Legacy Tower first opened its doors at Texas Children’s Hospital as the new home of heart, intensive care and surgery. The pediatric intensive care unit opened in May 2018, and Texas Children’s No. 1 ranked Heart Center officially moved into Legacy Tower four months later. The hospital’s cutting-edge, 640,000-square-foot facility allows Texas Children’s to continue providing the highest quality care possible for the most critically ill children who come to us for help.
“When this tower was still under construction, we named it Legacy Tower,” said Mark A. Wallace, Texas Children’s president and chief executive officer. “We knew this would be a place that would not only hold Texas Children’s legacy, but also the legacy of so many others, including our resilient patients and the dedicated team of caregivers who work hard each and every day to create healthier futures for children everywhere.”
On May 31, 2019, Lester and Sue Smith Legacy Tower was blessed and dedicated at a special ceremony with nearly 100 guests in attendance. The tower is named in memory of the late Houston philanthropist Lester Smith and his wife Sue, who have been long-time supporters of Texas Children’s Hospital and generously donated $50 million to Texas Children’s to support the construction of the tower, as well as to support patient care and research at Texas Children’s Cancer Center.
“We have everything under one roof to take care of all of the sickest children,” said Texas Children’s Surgeon-in-Chief Dr. Larry Hollier. “We have all of the diagnostic, surgical and interventional radiology capabilities and are fully equipped to provide the highest level of ICU care. After visiting the nation’s leading children’s hospitals, I can say without a doubt, no other place has something like Legacy Tower.”
While being in the intensive care unit can be difficult on patients and their families, many are appreciative of the design of Legacy Tower. Patient families have expressed how comfortable they are in their new, much larger spaces, and how warm and inviting the new amenities and environment offer them.
“To have an ICU that has a comfortable bed and you never have to leave your child’s side is important,” said Clare Bensh, mom to a former PICU patient at Texas Children’s. “For a baby who sadly has never been outside, it’s at least the next best thing to be able to turn her around in the bed and the windows are large enough for natural light to shine through. It’s just a better environment for her to thrive in.”
The critical care rooms inside Legacy Tower are between 350 to 450 square feet, three times the size of the hospital's old ICU rooms in West Tower. The rooms feature a dedicated family space, a bathroom and shower, and care teams have enhanced visibility and monitoring between patient rooms and into patients’ rooms from the nurses' work stations. The rooms are also equipped with booms that provides gas, power and data from the ceiling, and allows staff to position a patient almost anywhere in the 360 degree circle.
“The move into Legacy Tower has been a huge game changer for us in the delivery of critical patient care,” said Chief of Critical Care Medicine Dr. Lara Shekerdemian. “I’m excited every day I walk into Legacy Tower. Our patients and families, and our medical teams, are very happy with their new spaces. We are privileged to be in our new home that will serve our most critically ill patients for years to come.”
Lester and Sue Smith Legacy Tower is also the new home of Texas Children’s Heart Center® – ranked No. 1 in the nation by U.S. News & World Report in cardiology and heart surgery. The Heart Center features an outpatient clinic, four catheterization labs with one intraprocedural MRI, a cardiovascular intensive care unit, four cardiovascular operating rooms and cardiology acute care beds.
“Everything we would ever want as a specialty is here,” said Chief of Congenital Heart Surgery Dr. Christopher Caldarone. “We have new and innovative centers like the exercise center, the gym where we can show patients what they’re capable of doing rather than telling them what they can’t do. All of this sets Texas Children’s apart. The only way to stay ahead of everyone else is to ensure that we bring all of the expertise available to bear to every decision for every patient in a timely manner.”
Texas Children’s started planning for Lester and Sue Smith Legacy Tower more than five years ago as an effort to reinvest in the programs our most critically ill patients need. The demand for these services has continued to grow – here in the Houston community and beyond. Prior to the opening of the new tower, the hospital’s core areas – Critical Care, Emergency Center and ORS/PACU – were often at capacity.
As an organization, changes were needed to advance quality, service, safety and strategic growth, and to broaden our expertise and better coordinate care to improve experiences for patients and their families.
“The building of Legacy Tower has been a long journey and has really shown Texas Children’s at its best,” said Executive Vice President Mark Mullarkey. “Through Legacy Tower, we were able to expand our access to care for our most critical patients and are providing to more children and families, experiencing the greatest needs, then ever before.”
To learn more about Lester and Sue Smith Legacy Tower, click here.