New pediatric and congenital heart center offers unique care, comfort to families

SAN ANTONIO – A unique, state-of-the-art pediatric heart center, which doctors are saying is unlike anything else in Texas, is about to open in San Antonio.

Workers are still hammering away at University Hospital, creating what doctors say will make history. The more than $9 million Pediatric and Congenital Hear Care Unit will put care and comfort first.

“We know that they could be in the hospital weeks, if not months. We need to create more than a hospital bed for their child, and the unit is designed for that purpose in addition to getting great care for their kid,” said Dr. Adil Husain, chief of pediatric cardiothoracic surgery at UT Health and pediatric surgeon-in-chief at University Hospital.

Even though the center is under construction now, some of the special features are already in place. It has a playroom for patients and there are 18 beds. In addition, four hotel-style rooms are set up for parents who need to stay long term to be close to their children.

The rooms will come in handy for the Winklers whose 4-month-old daughter, Evie, was born with a serious heart problem.

“It's just a temporary fix. It's a repair. Her heart can't be fixed. We are just rerouting the blood supply.  Making it work for now, basically,” said Zack Winkler, Evie's father.

Winkler said it’s difficult to explain how important the enhanced care and comfort at the new center will be. The family struggles traveling back and forth from their home in New Braunfels.

“Having to leave her, then go stay somewhere else, then come and sit in a chair next to her bed for a few hours, then leave again — I knew I just couldn't do that,” said Jennie Winkler, Evie's mother.

The doctors are convinced that the bigger, custom-designed center will ultimately save lives of children from all over Texas.

“Over half of the children we treat in our program come from counties outside Bexar County.  Almost 40 percent of our volume comes from the Rio Grande Valley and El Paso. So these are families that are not only dealt with a very unfair health issue, they are dealing with it hundreds of miles away from their support system,” Husain said.

While the new unit will not necessarily offer more room for more patients, it will offer an enhancement of the current enhanced care plan in place. Husain said rave reviews from parents, as well as referring doctors, combined with better patient outcomes is what made the hospital system agree to build the center. He said he imagines that the reduced mortality rates will continue to be the case when the move is made in April.

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About the Author:

Ursula Pari has been a staple of television news in Texas at KSAT 12 News since 1996 and a veteran of broadcast journalism for more than 30 years.