Hospital News

Heart Hospital of Austin Chief Executive Officer, David Laird, was recently honored by Texas Tech University with the esteemed Professor John and Starr Blair Award for Excellence in Health Organization Management. Laird, who graduated from Texas Tech University with a degree in business administration and finance, received the award during a luncheon on March 24. He also gave a keynote address as part of the John A. Buesseler Distinguished Lecture Series. The award is sponsored by the endowment from the John Aure Buesseler and Cathryn Anne Hansen Buesseler Foundation and is presented each spring. The endowment, which also supports the lecture series and was established in 2000, encourages and promotes excellence at all levels of teaching, research, learning, and service in health organization management. Dr. John A. Buesseler was the emeritus founding dean of the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine and emeritus founding vice president for health sciences. “I am so grateful for this incredible recognition,” Laird said. “The legacy and generosity of Dr. Buesseler, one of the most innovative health professionals in West Texas history, serve as excellent examples to the next generation.” Laird also serves on the Texas Tech University Rawls College of Business advisory board. Laird has spent twenty-four years at Heart Hospital of Austin, including the last sixteen as chief executive officer. With his leadership, Heart Hospital of Austin has received numerous accolades for high-quality care, exceptional patient satisfaction, and for being a

Ascension Texas announced today the acquisition of Orthopedic Associates of Central Texas. The acquisition will add nine new locations, 19 doctors, more than 20 physician assistants and physical therapists and more than 100 staff total to the program. The acquisition will expand the Ascension Texas footprint in providing personalized care for bone and muscle injuries, joint pain and orthopedic diseases. The Ascension Texas multi-specialty orthopedic and sports medicine capabilities include treatments such as medication therapy, minimally invasive outpatient surgery, non-surgical injections and orthobiologics, orthopedic surgery including total and partial joint replacement, rehabilitation, exercise physiology and sports performance. great place to work. Those accolades include IBM Watson Health’s 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals award, which the hospital has received twelve times, and Healthgrades ranking Heart Hospital of Austin as the No. 1 cardiac program in Texas for six consecutive years. 

“We are excited to welcome these new additions to our orthopedic and sports medicine program,” said Andy Davis, President and CEO of Ascension Texas. “This acquisition and expansion fulfills our mission to provide convenient care close to home as Ascension Texas continues to expand with the growth of our population.” “These experienced doctors and staff bring a range of subspecialties including spine, shoulder, sports medicine, trauma, joint replacement, physiatry, podiatry, hand and foot/ankle care,” said Adam Bauman, Vice President, Orthopedics and Sports Performance, Ascension. “We look forward to serving the orthopedic and sports medicine needs of Central Texas in an even bigger way.”

• East Round Rock – 4112 Links Lane,

Round Rock • Cedar Park – 1401 Medical Parkway

Building 2, Suite 150, Cedar Park • Round Rock – 16020 Park Valley

Drive, Suite 100, Round Rock • North Austin – 12309 North MoPac

Expressway Suite 150, Austin • Southwest Austin – 5625 Eiger Road,

Suite 175, Austin • 2nd Street – 3707 South 2nd Street

Suite 100, Austin • La Grange – 657 East Travis Street,

Suite C, Austin • Central Austin – 3200 Red River

Street, Suite 201, Austin • Bastrop – opening in August

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UT Health Austin and Dell Children’s Medical Center announce the opening of the Pediatric Abdominal Transplant Center on April 5th, the first and only program of its kind in Central Texas, offering exceptional care to children ranging from newborns to young adults living with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) or kidney failure. The Pediatric Abdominal Transplant Center is a collaboration between Dell Children’s and UT Health Austin, the clinical practice of Dell Medical School at The University of Texas at Austin. “With the launch of our Pediatric Abdominal Transplant Center,

children and young adults in Central Texas will no longer have to leave their homes, families or communities for kidney transplant care,” said Nicole Turgeon, M.D., transplant director for the Adult and Pediatric Abdominal Transplant Centers and professor in the Department of Surgery and Perioperative Care. “The new program represents a unique strategic collaboration across Dell Children’s Medical Center, Dell Seton Medical Center at The University of Texas and UT Health Austin, building on the Adult Abdominal Transplant Center to provide seamless kidney transplant care for patients of all ages, from newborns to adults.” More than 9,800 children and adolescents in the United States have ESRD or kidney failure and they rely on life saving dialysis or a kidney transplant, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Housed at Dell Children’s Medical Center, the Pediatric Abdominal Transplant Center diagnoses, treats and manages the care of infants, children and young adults in need of a kidney transplant. Distinguishing program elements include: Coordination of patient care between referring physicians and team members to ensure each child receives the highest level of specialized care in Central Texas. • A team of medical experts comprising leaders in pediatric abdominal care and highly

specialized pediatric transplant providers who work with young patients and their families to develop personalized treatment plans. • Leveraging of the latest research-proven methodologies to successfully treat pediatric patients in need of an organ transplant, using both donated kidneys and working with living kidney donors. The Pediatric Abdominal Transplant Center follows the November 2021 establishment of the Adult Abdominal Transplant Center, a program of Dell Seton Medical Center at The University of Texas, which diagnoses, treats and manages care for patients 18 years or older in need of a kidney, as well as those willing to be a living kidney donor.

By Lauren Rouse

As a person ages, activity limitations can affect their ability to live independently. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, adults 80 years and older are 43 percent more likely to have physical limitations than their younger counterparts aged 50-59. In turn, functional limitations and barriers to living independently can impact life satisfaction—attitudes and beliefs about quality of life. While previous studies have focused on the association between activity limitations and life satisfaction, few studies have examined how optimism can decrease the effects of activities of daily living (ADLs) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) on life satisfaction. Matthew Lee Smith, PhD, MPH, associate professor in Environmental & Occupational Health at the Texas A&M University School of Public Health, along with Kent Jason Go Cheng, PhD, from Syracuse University, and Darcy Jones (DJ) McMaughan, PhD, from Oklahoma State University, recently published a study examining the relationship between activity limitations and life satisfaction in the Journal of Applied Gerontology. Using data from the 2008-2018 Health and Retirement Study Leave Behind Survey waves, the team examined if activity limitations were negatively associated with life satisfaction, if optimism was positively associated with life satisfaction, and if optimism lessened the impact of activity limitations on life satisfaction among middle-aged and older adults over time. The average age of the sample was 68.5 years, and the majority of respondents were white, married women who were not in the labor force and had moderate-to-high levels of optimism, life satisfaction and functional ability. “Mean-centered age was positively associated with life satisfaction, suggesting a slight increase in life satisfaction for every additional year lived,” Smith said. “Race, Hispanic origin, marital status, and self-rated health appeared to have strong associations with life satisfaction. As activity limitations increased, life satisfaction statistically significantly decreased; however, an increase in optimism was related to an increase in life satisfaction.” “This current study shows that optimism can positively influence