What's Happening in San Antonio, TX…

University Hospital in San Antonio is getting ready to open a Pediatric and Congenital Heart Care Unit, a $9m undertaking that doctors believe will make history.

The facility is designed to meet the needs of children who may be hospitalized for weeks or months, by considering what can be done to help their families while the children undergo treatment.

According to Dr. Adil Husain, who is University Hospital's pediatric surgeon-in-chief as well as chief of cardiothoracic surgery at UT Health, the aim is to do more than simply provide a hospital bed for the pediatric patient, they also have facilities for the child's family. Among the innovations in the new center is a playroom for the 18 patients the center holds, and four rooms for parents, which resemble hotel rooms rather than medical quarters.

The doctors believe the new center will save lives of children from throughout Texas. Dr. Husain said more than half the children they see live outside Bexar County, with some families traveling hundreds of miles to obtain treatment. He sees this as unfair, since it adds the stress of repeated travel to the battle against the illness itself. Having the families able to stay together at the center is expected to improve patient outcomes; an April 2017 opening is expected.

Facilities like this can benefit if managers work with brochure printers to create a booklet that describes the services and amenities available at the new unit.