1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:02,159 Welcome to the Becker's Healthcare podcast. I'm Chris 2 00:00:02,159 --> 00:00:03,439 Sosa, your host, and I'm thrilled to be 3 00:00:03,439 --> 00:00:05,839 joined today by Matt Timmons. He's senior vice 4 00:00:05,839 --> 00:00:08,240 president and chief operating officer of Manning Family 5 00:00:08,240 --> 00:00:09,539 Children's in New Orleans. 6 00:00:09,919 --> 00:00:11,619 Matt, thank you for joining us today. 7 00:00:11,919 --> 00:00:13,439 Chris, good to see you again. Thanks for 8 00:00:13,439 --> 00:00:15,605 having me. Yeah. You're a long time guest 9 00:00:15,605 --> 00:00:18,004 of the Becker's Healthcare podcast, and we're always 10 00:00:18,004 --> 00:00:18,904 happy to have, 11 00:00:19,364 --> 00:00:22,164 repeat guests such as yourself. But just for 12 00:00:22,164 --> 00:00:22,664 those 13 00:00:22,964 --> 00:00:24,964 members of our listening audience who might not 14 00:00:24,964 --> 00:00:28,024 be familiar with you or Manny Family Children's, 15 00:00:28,399 --> 00:00:29,600 can you take a little time and let 16 00:00:29,600 --> 00:00:31,439 us know a little bit about yourself and 17 00:00:31,439 --> 00:00:32,100 the organization? 18 00:00:32,640 --> 00:00:35,200 Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely. So, so as you mentioned, 19 00:00:35,200 --> 00:00:36,960 I'm the the chief operating officer here at 20 00:00:36,960 --> 00:00:39,359 Manning Family Children's. Manning Family Children's is a 21 00:00:39,359 --> 00:00:40,479 263 22 00:00:40,479 --> 00:00:41,780 bed, freestanding, 23 00:00:42,554 --> 00:00:45,274 comprehensive children's hospital located right here in beautiful 24 00:00:45,274 --> 00:00:46,335 New Orleans, Louisiana. 25 00:00:46,954 --> 00:00:48,714 We're part of an eight hospital system known 26 00:00:48,714 --> 00:00:51,354 as LCMC Health. We are the only children's 27 00:00:51,354 --> 00:00:52,574 hospital in our system. 28 00:00:53,114 --> 00:00:55,674 We are the only comprehensive children's hospital in 29 00:00:55,674 --> 00:00:58,019 the entire state of Louisiana. We provide care 30 00:00:58,019 --> 00:01:00,820 to all children regardless of their, family's ability 31 00:01:00,820 --> 00:01:01,479 to pay. 32 00:01:01,939 --> 00:01:04,180 Some other interesting notes about Manning Family Children's. 33 00:01:04,180 --> 00:01:06,599 We have a 51 bed behavioral hospital, 34 00:01:07,379 --> 00:01:09,219 and that also comes with a kind of 35 00:01:09,219 --> 00:01:10,759 a complete wrap around 36 00:01:11,515 --> 00:01:13,114 set of mental and behavioral health programs and 37 00:01:13,114 --> 00:01:15,194 services to support this, you know, this need 38 00:01:15,194 --> 00:01:16,094 for these patients. 39 00:01:16,555 --> 00:01:18,155 And outside of our main campus, we have 40 00:01:18,155 --> 00:01:20,715 30 locations sprinkled really across the state of 41 00:01:20,715 --> 00:01:23,614 Louisiana, some into Mississippi, Western Mississippi, 42 00:01:24,200 --> 00:01:25,799 really trying to make sure we're bringing access 43 00:01:25,799 --> 00:01:27,959 to pediatric specialists closer to to where our 44 00:01:27,959 --> 00:01:28,780 patients live. 45 00:01:29,479 --> 00:01:31,239 Gotcha. Thanks for laying that out for us, 46 00:01:31,239 --> 00:01:31,739 Matt. 47 00:01:32,119 --> 00:01:32,619 So 48 00:01:33,399 --> 00:01:35,159 off the top here, let's look a little 49 00:01:35,159 --> 00:01:36,644 bit back at 2025. 50 00:01:36,724 --> 00:01:38,084 I know you guys had you got a 51 00:01:38,084 --> 00:01:39,864 new name, so you're working on brand application 52 00:01:40,004 --> 00:01:40,984 and things like that. 53 00:01:41,444 --> 00:01:43,364 But let us know. So what would you 54 00:01:43,364 --> 00:01:45,524 say is the most important initiative that you 55 00:01:45,524 --> 00:01:47,524 led last year? And let us know about 56 00:01:47,524 --> 00:01:48,185 the results. 57 00:01:48,564 --> 00:01:48,965 Yeah. 58 00:01:49,444 --> 00:01:51,444 Great question. Yeah. 2025 59 00:01:51,444 --> 00:01:53,689 was a big year for us. You mentioned, 60 00:01:53,689 --> 00:01:54,969 and I know we talked about it last 61 00:01:54,969 --> 00:01:55,469 time, 62 00:01:55,849 --> 00:01:58,090 we changed our brand, changed our name, and 63 00:01:58,090 --> 00:01:59,530 so spent a lot of time on that. 64 00:01:59,530 --> 00:02:01,849 And that was a huge part of 2025 65 00:02:01,849 --> 00:02:03,609 and something that, you know, was a great 66 00:02:03,609 --> 00:02:04,969 experience for me. It's the first time I'd 67 00:02:04,969 --> 00:02:07,064 ever been through it, in my career, and 68 00:02:07,064 --> 00:02:08,685 so that was fun to learn. But 69 00:02:09,064 --> 00:02:10,764 when I think about, you know, 70 00:02:11,705 --> 00:02:13,064 and all that was very important. So I 71 00:02:13,064 --> 00:02:14,425 don't want to to take away from the 72 00:02:14,425 --> 00:02:15,864 importance. When I think about things that I 73 00:02:15,864 --> 00:02:18,509 specifically was really focused on in my role, 74 00:02:19,069 --> 00:02:20,689 one of the areas that I have responsibility 75 00:02:21,069 --> 00:02:22,689 for here is our heart center. 76 00:02:23,469 --> 00:02:25,789 And in late twenty twenty four, our heart 77 00:02:25,789 --> 00:02:27,409 center suffered some really, 78 00:02:28,110 --> 00:02:30,370 just kinda faced some adversity. We had some 79 00:02:30,764 --> 00:02:32,284 physician and surgeon turnover, 80 00:02:33,004 --> 00:02:35,745 really some kind of unfortunate, really strange, 81 00:02:36,685 --> 00:02:39,485 situations that really impacted key areas within the 82 00:02:39,485 --> 00:02:41,724 heart center and led to, and and and 83 00:02:41,724 --> 00:02:42,944 some market headwinds, 84 00:02:44,080 --> 00:02:46,400 that just it it impacted that service line, 85 00:02:46,400 --> 00:02:47,939 the volumes, and the culture. 86 00:02:48,479 --> 00:02:50,479 And so we really saw, like, you know, 87 00:02:50,479 --> 00:02:51,280 2025 88 00:02:51,280 --> 00:02:52,479 needed to be the year of the heart 89 00:02:52,479 --> 00:02:54,400 center so we could, get it back up 90 00:02:54,400 --> 00:02:55,919 to the, you know, to the prominent heart 91 00:02:55,919 --> 00:02:57,939 center that that it it had been before. 92 00:02:58,514 --> 00:03:00,275 So I spent a lot of time and 93 00:03:00,275 --> 00:03:00,775 I, 94 00:03:01,794 --> 00:03:03,155 you know, like, really the first part of 95 00:03:03,155 --> 00:03:03,955 2025, 96 00:03:03,955 --> 00:03:05,555 I spent several months and I kinda went 97 00:03:05,555 --> 00:03:06,935 on a listening tour. I, 98 00:03:07,474 --> 00:03:09,555 one on one discussions. I did lots of 99 00:03:09,555 --> 00:03:11,955 rounding, focus group sessions with all the different 100 00:03:11,955 --> 00:03:12,615 team members. 101 00:03:13,030 --> 00:03:14,870 We even did an anonymous survey, really trying 102 00:03:14,870 --> 00:03:16,629 to understand what's going on, where are the 103 00:03:16,629 --> 00:03:17,129 challenges, 104 00:03:18,229 --> 00:03:19,289 why you know, 105 00:03:19,750 --> 00:03:21,750 asking asking our experts in the heart center 106 00:03:21,750 --> 00:03:23,750 why. Why are our volumes decreasing? What are 107 00:03:23,750 --> 00:03:25,110 things we need to be doing? Where are 108 00:03:25,110 --> 00:03:26,810 the, you know, where are the blind spots? 109 00:03:27,590 --> 00:03:28,650 Got great feedback. 110 00:03:29,344 --> 00:03:30,705 And so then we just use a really 111 00:03:30,705 --> 00:03:33,125 kind of pragmatic approach, take the feedback, 112 00:03:33,665 --> 00:03:35,824 worked with a task force, and we developed 113 00:03:35,824 --> 00:03:38,784 a very large, very complex action plan, and 114 00:03:38,784 --> 00:03:41,365 we spent 2025 executing that action plan. 115 00:03:42,139 --> 00:03:44,300 And, you know, I can look back now, 116 00:03:44,620 --> 00:03:47,199 now that we're, you know, just starting 2026. 117 00:03:47,259 --> 00:03:49,900 We've had great physician recruitment. We've seen growth 118 00:03:49,900 --> 00:03:51,759 in our volumes in those key areas. 119 00:03:52,139 --> 00:03:53,900 The program is is as strong as it 120 00:03:53,900 --> 00:03:54,639 ever was. 121 00:03:55,395 --> 00:03:57,235 And we did a a follow-up survey. Okay. 122 00:03:57,235 --> 00:03:58,754 We've been doing all these things. We've been 123 00:03:58,754 --> 00:04:00,294 working with y'all as a team. 124 00:04:00,835 --> 00:04:02,995 How are we doing? Like, what's the culture? 125 00:04:02,995 --> 00:04:05,314 How are people feeling? And the the I 126 00:04:05,314 --> 00:04:06,754 was so pleased. And it was it was 127 00:04:06,754 --> 00:04:07,955 like a it was like a end of 128 00:04:07,955 --> 00:04:08,939 year gift for, 129 00:04:09,420 --> 00:04:10,860 for me and and really for the team 130 00:04:10,860 --> 00:04:12,540 that worked so hard on this is that, 131 00:04:12,540 --> 00:04:14,540 you know, really the our our heart center 132 00:04:14,540 --> 00:04:15,200 team members, 133 00:04:15,819 --> 00:04:16,319 overwhelmingly 134 00:04:17,020 --> 00:04:18,639 provided positive feedback, 135 00:04:19,180 --> 00:04:20,699 and everybody really felt like we were going 136 00:04:20,699 --> 00:04:22,264 back in the right direction. So I know 137 00:04:22,264 --> 00:04:23,464 it's kind of a specific thing, but it 138 00:04:23,464 --> 00:04:25,305 was really important. The heart center is is 139 00:04:25,305 --> 00:04:25,625 a obviously, 140 00:04:26,345 --> 00:04:28,205 one of the most critical service lines. 141 00:04:28,585 --> 00:04:30,665 Again, being the only comprehensive children's hospital in 142 00:04:30,665 --> 00:04:31,564 the state of Louisiana, 143 00:04:32,264 --> 00:04:33,865 our children here need this, and we needed 144 00:04:33,865 --> 00:04:35,625 this program to be strong. And so we 145 00:04:35,625 --> 00:04:37,819 focused on it. You know, really executed on 146 00:04:37,819 --> 00:04:40,560 an action plan, focused on culture, and, 147 00:04:40,860 --> 00:04:43,259 I'm really proud of what our team has 148 00:04:43,259 --> 00:04:44,319 been able to do, 149 00:04:44,699 --> 00:04:46,139 just in a matter of of the twelve 150 00:04:46,139 --> 00:04:47,759 months of 2025. 151 00:04:48,555 --> 00:04:50,894 Civics are great, Matt. Do not apologize or 152 00:04:51,194 --> 00:04:53,115 be wary about sharing those with us. We're 153 00:04:53,115 --> 00:04:54,954 so glad you did. And let us know 154 00:04:54,954 --> 00:04:56,475 about the test steps that you took to 155 00:04:56,475 --> 00:04:58,574 strengthen your heart program. That's fantastic. 156 00:04:59,354 --> 00:05:01,110 Alright. So let's turn around and look at 157 00:05:01,189 --> 00:05:03,589 2026. As you said, we're just about a 158 00:05:03,589 --> 00:05:05,430 month into the year, but still plenty to 159 00:05:05,430 --> 00:05:08,169 go. So when you look at 2026, 160 00:05:08,389 --> 00:05:09,990 what would you say are the big priorities 161 00:05:09,990 --> 00:05:11,990 and the headwinds that you're focused on for 162 00:05:11,990 --> 00:05:14,310 this year and any tailwinds if, there are 163 00:05:14,310 --> 00:05:15,289 any worth noting? 164 00:05:15,974 --> 00:05:18,694 Yeah. So I think priority wise, of course, 165 00:05:18,694 --> 00:05:19,814 we have a have a long list of 166 00:05:19,814 --> 00:05:20,714 priorities, but, 167 00:05:21,254 --> 00:05:23,175 one of the important ones, one of the 168 00:05:23,175 --> 00:05:25,034 bigger ones that we're looking at is, 169 00:05:25,814 --> 00:05:27,750 in my role in particular, is, 170 00:05:28,310 --> 00:05:31,350 doing a facility master plan. Okay. We have 171 00:05:31,350 --> 00:05:32,009 a beautiful 172 00:05:32,389 --> 00:05:33,449 hospital located, 173 00:05:33,990 --> 00:05:35,350 right in the heart of New Orleans, right 174 00:05:35,350 --> 00:05:37,589 on the Mississippi River at Uptown, gorgeous oak 175 00:05:37,589 --> 00:05:38,970 trees, this amazing campus. 176 00:05:39,829 --> 00:05:42,185 But as I know many other hospitals face 177 00:05:42,185 --> 00:05:44,664 regularly, we've outgrown the space that we have. 178 00:05:44,664 --> 00:05:46,264 We have, you know, the need is more 179 00:05:46,264 --> 00:05:47,944 than the space than what we can accommodate. 180 00:05:47,944 --> 00:05:48,444 So, 181 00:05:48,824 --> 00:05:51,564 we're gonna spend some dedicated time, 182 00:05:52,185 --> 00:05:54,540 with some experts to help us understand what 183 00:05:54,540 --> 00:05:56,060 do we need to be planning for for 184 00:05:56,060 --> 00:05:57,580 the next ten years, what does our growth 185 00:05:57,580 --> 00:05:58,240 look like, 186 00:05:58,699 --> 00:06:01,100 and then, you know, brick and mortar, structure 187 00:06:01,100 --> 00:06:02,620 wise, what does that mean for us and 188 00:06:02,620 --> 00:06:04,939 where do we need to be, investing capital 189 00:06:04,939 --> 00:06:06,000 dollars to grow, 190 00:06:06,300 --> 00:06:08,060 to ensure we can continue to to care 191 00:06:08,060 --> 00:06:10,285 for all the kids in the, state of 192 00:06:10,285 --> 00:06:11,904 Louisiana and Mississippi who need us. 193 00:06:12,285 --> 00:06:14,045 So that's one big one. I will also 194 00:06:14,045 --> 00:06:16,064 say there's some service line specific 195 00:06:16,524 --> 00:06:18,145 priorities that are big for us. 196 00:06:18,524 --> 00:06:19,884 Of course, we're not done with heart, so 197 00:06:19,884 --> 00:06:21,245 I would say that's still on the on 198 00:06:21,245 --> 00:06:23,270 the priority list. But we have a lot 199 00:06:23,270 --> 00:06:23,750 of, 200 00:06:24,230 --> 00:06:25,189 growth and, 201 00:06:25,750 --> 00:06:26,889 kind of specific initiatives, 202 00:06:27,990 --> 00:06:28,889 research wise, 203 00:06:29,830 --> 00:06:31,589 related to our center for cancer and blood 204 00:06:31,589 --> 00:06:32,089 disorders. 205 00:06:32,470 --> 00:06:35,449 It's a growing area for us. And so, 206 00:06:35,964 --> 00:06:39,024 specifically, we talk about our, sickle cell population, 207 00:06:39,084 --> 00:06:41,024 and so we have a lot of priorities 208 00:06:41,245 --> 00:06:42,545 kind of tied to that. 209 00:06:42,925 --> 00:06:44,685 And then, you know, last but certainly not 210 00:06:44,685 --> 00:06:47,024 least, we are we have a sort of, 211 00:06:47,564 --> 00:06:49,644 finished the design process, but we're going to 212 00:06:49,644 --> 00:06:50,144 be 213 00:06:50,589 --> 00:06:52,050 building a brand new NICU. 214 00:06:52,750 --> 00:06:55,230 We've been over capacity for almost two years, 215 00:06:55,230 --> 00:06:56,910 and so we know that that's the first 216 00:06:56,910 --> 00:06:59,089 priority when we talk about our campus expansion. 217 00:06:59,550 --> 00:07:01,709 So we're we're, embarking. If I construct you, 218 00:07:01,709 --> 00:07:03,009 we'll start next month, 219 00:07:03,805 --> 00:07:06,605 on a brand new 60 bed NICU, to 220 00:07:06,605 --> 00:07:07,105 accommodate, 221 00:07:08,045 --> 00:07:11,085 our growth there. And then outside a priority 222 00:07:11,085 --> 00:07:12,845 outside the four walls of the hospital, if 223 00:07:12,845 --> 00:07:15,105 you will, which, you know, it's something that 224 00:07:15,409 --> 00:07:17,329 for Manning Family Children's is really a part 225 00:07:17,329 --> 00:07:19,409 of our DNA is our our kind of 226 00:07:19,409 --> 00:07:20,949 hand in hand involvement with, 227 00:07:21,409 --> 00:07:22,849 with our community and some of the different 228 00:07:22,849 --> 00:07:25,409 community programs that we partner with. We have 229 00:07:25,409 --> 00:07:27,909 a school based health program called Thrive Kids, 230 00:07:28,305 --> 00:07:30,384 and it's, you know, really kind of the 231 00:07:30,384 --> 00:07:31,125 in school, 232 00:07:31,985 --> 00:07:34,245 behavioral and overall health program. 233 00:07:35,105 --> 00:07:37,584 And we need to scale that up. And 234 00:07:37,584 --> 00:07:38,805 so one of our priorities 235 00:07:39,105 --> 00:07:41,970 is, you know, working through a plan to 236 00:07:41,970 --> 00:07:43,569 scale that up to reach even more children 237 00:07:43,569 --> 00:07:46,129 across the New Orleans re Greater New Orleans 238 00:07:46,129 --> 00:07:48,310 area and and even really all across, 239 00:07:48,689 --> 00:07:50,930 the state of Louisiana. And that's complicated because 240 00:07:50,930 --> 00:07:51,589 it involves, 241 00:07:52,449 --> 00:07:56,475 public and, public funding sources and multiple players. 242 00:07:56,475 --> 00:07:57,675 You know? So it's a kind of a 243 00:07:57,675 --> 00:07:58,975 a challenging priority. 244 00:07:59,675 --> 00:08:00,875 And so I don't I wouldn't call that 245 00:08:00,875 --> 00:08:02,634 a headwind, but that's certainly one of the, 246 00:08:03,275 --> 00:08:05,115 challenges with that with that being one of 247 00:08:05,115 --> 00:08:05,694 our priorities. 248 00:08:06,875 --> 00:08:08,014 In terms of headwinds, 249 00:08:09,475 --> 00:08:11,490 I think, you know, and a you probably 250 00:08:11,610 --> 00:08:13,370 this is you're probably hearing this from everybody 251 00:08:13,370 --> 00:08:15,069 you talk to, but balancing 252 00:08:15,449 --> 00:08:18,730 our priorities and our growth and our, focus 253 00:08:18,730 --> 00:08:21,449 on providing care to kids with all that 254 00:08:21,530 --> 00:08:23,389 just continued uncertainties around, 255 00:08:24,064 --> 00:08:27,105 funding sources. We're in an interesting community here. 256 00:08:27,584 --> 00:08:29,524 70% of our patient population 257 00:08:29,985 --> 00:08:30,785 that we serve, 258 00:08:31,185 --> 00:08:32,165 depends on Medicaid. 259 00:08:32,785 --> 00:08:33,524 And so 260 00:08:33,904 --> 00:08:36,144 Medicaid, you know, the federal and state decisions 261 00:08:36,144 --> 00:08:39,509 that around Medicaid funding have a profound impact 262 00:08:39,509 --> 00:08:41,910 on us. And so it's sort of always 263 00:08:41,910 --> 00:08:42,570 a headwind, 264 00:08:43,110 --> 00:08:44,710 but seems to be a bit stronger of 265 00:08:44,710 --> 00:08:45,269 a headwind, 266 00:08:45,590 --> 00:08:46,570 you know, currently, 267 00:08:47,190 --> 00:08:49,929 with some unknowns. And so as we plan 268 00:08:50,404 --> 00:08:53,205 our growth, we plan our investments, our capital 269 00:08:53,205 --> 00:08:54,425 investments, we plan, 270 00:08:55,125 --> 00:08:57,524 our, you know, again, growing our our school 271 00:08:57,524 --> 00:08:58,024 programs. 272 00:08:58,804 --> 00:09:01,125 We have to balance that out with trying 273 00:09:01,125 --> 00:09:04,264 to to navigate those uncertainties around funding. 274 00:09:05,050 --> 00:09:06,250 And I would say so that's kind of 275 00:09:06,250 --> 00:09:07,529 the that's kind of the headwind with every 276 00:09:07,529 --> 00:09:08,970 single initiative that we have is to make 277 00:09:08,970 --> 00:09:09,950 sure that you're, 278 00:09:10,809 --> 00:09:13,370 delicate and doing that delicate dance, as much 279 00:09:13,370 --> 00:09:14,190 as we can. 280 00:09:15,050 --> 00:09:16,649 Yeah. Delicate dance is a great way to 281 00:09:16,649 --> 00:09:18,570 put it, Matt. And and as you said, 282 00:09:18,570 --> 00:09:19,870 I think a lot of 283 00:09:20,384 --> 00:09:22,884 leaders in your position can relate to that, 284 00:09:24,065 --> 00:09:26,304 task ahead of you. But it's something I 285 00:09:26,304 --> 00:09:27,904 I know that you all take on, with 286 00:09:27,904 --> 00:09:29,365 a great deal of pride and, 287 00:09:29,904 --> 00:09:31,365 initiative and, you know, 288 00:09:31,825 --> 00:09:33,264 you you you know that you're gonna get 289 00:09:33,264 --> 00:09:34,705 a job done one way or the other. 290 00:09:34,705 --> 00:09:36,730 Right? So with that in mind, 291 00:09:37,110 --> 00:09:39,110 you you've listed off our audience a great 292 00:09:39,110 --> 00:09:40,309 many things that you have coming ahead, and 293 00:09:40,309 --> 00:09:42,230 they all sound terrific. I think they're gonna 294 00:09:42,230 --> 00:09:42,730 benefit, 295 00:09:43,190 --> 00:09:45,370 not only your organization, but your your population 296 00:09:45,590 --> 00:09:46,250 of patients, 297 00:09:46,950 --> 00:09:47,450 tremendously. 298 00:09:47,830 --> 00:09:49,049 So when you look at 299 00:09:49,445 --> 00:09:51,284 maybe one or two of those initiatives that 300 00:09:51,284 --> 00:09:52,264 you have coming, 301 00:09:52,965 --> 00:09:54,804 what would you say is the hardest thing 302 00:09:54,804 --> 00:09:55,544 you have 303 00:09:56,004 --> 00:09:57,684 going on you have to do in the 304 00:09:57,684 --> 00:09:59,445 coming year? And it doesn't mean you're not 305 00:09:59,445 --> 00:10:01,044 looking forward to it, but it's just something 306 00:10:01,044 --> 00:10:03,409 you know that you really gotta, you know, 307 00:10:03,409 --> 00:10:05,350 have a high degree of focus to accomplish. 308 00:10:05,649 --> 00:10:06,149 Yeah. 309 00:10:07,089 --> 00:10:08,850 I would kinda go back to our school 310 00:10:08,850 --> 00:10:11,889 based program. We started this program in 2020. 311 00:10:11,889 --> 00:10:14,129 It started with, you know, one FTE and 312 00:10:14,129 --> 00:10:15,009 kind of a dream. 313 00:10:15,904 --> 00:10:17,345 Our CEO had it was his you know, 314 00:10:17,345 --> 00:10:18,165 kind of his brainchild. 315 00:10:18,945 --> 00:10:21,504 And it's grown rapidly. A 100 FTEs were 316 00:10:21,504 --> 00:10:24,544 serving reaching a 100,000 kids. And, again, it's 317 00:10:24,544 --> 00:10:26,565 kinda wrap around services ensuring 318 00:10:27,105 --> 00:10:28,340 taking, you 319 00:10:29,519 --> 00:10:32,240 know, getting kids reaching kids in the schools 320 00:10:32,240 --> 00:10:34,160 where they're at and ensuring they have access 321 00:10:34,160 --> 00:10:35,920 to the specialists or the providers that they 322 00:10:35,920 --> 00:10:38,480 need, whether it's, again, behavioral health or any, 323 00:10:38,480 --> 00:10:39,860 really, any other health problem. 324 00:10:40,205 --> 00:10:42,605 It's been so critical to the city of 325 00:10:42,605 --> 00:10:44,845 New Orleans and the school districts that we're 326 00:10:44,845 --> 00:10:45,585 working with, 327 00:10:45,965 --> 00:10:47,644 and has been such an important part of 328 00:10:47,644 --> 00:10:49,404 the community in, you know, just in the 329 00:10:49,404 --> 00:10:50,945 short five years that it's been around. 330 00:10:51,404 --> 00:10:52,544 But it is at 331 00:10:52,910 --> 00:10:55,309 major risk of loss of funding. The funding 332 00:10:55,309 --> 00:10:56,190 sources are, 333 00:10:56,990 --> 00:10:57,490 many, 334 00:10:57,950 --> 00:10:59,629 but they're all sort of up in the 335 00:10:59,629 --> 00:11:01,790 air. And so we see that as probably 336 00:11:01,790 --> 00:11:02,450 the most 337 00:11:02,910 --> 00:11:03,410 challenging 338 00:11:03,790 --> 00:11:05,490 thing we have is 339 00:11:05,904 --> 00:11:08,085 figure out how we make sure we sustain 340 00:11:08,464 --> 00:11:10,225 what we have today in terms of the 341 00:11:10,225 --> 00:11:11,745 schools that we're in and the team that 342 00:11:11,745 --> 00:11:12,404 we have, 343 00:11:12,865 --> 00:11:15,365 providing this care to those kids in school. 344 00:11:15,424 --> 00:11:17,184 But then also, as I mentioned, we wanna 345 00:11:17,184 --> 00:11:18,544 scale that up. This is a program that 346 00:11:18,544 --> 00:11:20,065 needs to be everywhere across the state of 347 00:11:20,065 --> 00:11:22,160 Louisiana and every school across the Greater New 348 00:11:22,160 --> 00:11:23,379 Orleans area. And so, 349 00:11:24,080 --> 00:11:26,399 that we see is probably the hardest thing 350 00:11:26,399 --> 00:11:28,559 to do is figure out how we scale 351 00:11:28,559 --> 00:11:31,040 up, how we access provide access to more 352 00:11:31,040 --> 00:11:34,420 kids while also having all those difficult conversations 353 00:11:34,720 --> 00:11:35,174 with, 354 00:11:35,975 --> 00:11:38,534 city and state legislators and even up to 355 00:11:38,534 --> 00:11:40,695 the federal level and really advocating for the 356 00:11:40,695 --> 00:11:42,075 children of the state of Louisiana. 357 00:11:43,254 --> 00:11:44,534 You're gonna spend a lot of time on 358 00:11:44,534 --> 00:11:46,134 the phone if you're not already. Not take 359 00:11:46,214 --> 00:11:47,495 I take that back, man. I know you're 360 00:11:47,495 --> 00:11:49,320 already spending a lot of time on the 361 00:11:49,320 --> 00:11:51,480 phone for all those important reasons that you 362 00:11:51,480 --> 00:11:53,960 mentioned. But, yeah, thanks for as always, you're 363 00:11:53,960 --> 00:11:55,500 laying the that out for audience 364 00:11:55,879 --> 00:11:57,559 and just just how you're gonna get there 365 00:11:57,559 --> 00:11:59,080 because I know it's not easy, but I 366 00:11:59,080 --> 00:12:00,759 know, like I said, you're looking forward to 367 00:12:00,759 --> 00:12:01,580 it as well. 368 00:12:02,680 --> 00:12:04,460 I I am curious, though. So 369 00:12:04,804 --> 00:12:06,424 when you're in the middle of a project 370 00:12:06,725 --> 00:12:08,345 like the Thrive Kids 371 00:12:08,725 --> 00:12:11,204 and given how important it is to New 372 00:12:11,204 --> 00:12:12,985 Orleans community, so 373 00:12:13,924 --> 00:12:15,144 when you're out there 374 00:12:15,605 --> 00:12:17,204 selling is maybe not the right word. Just 375 00:12:17,284 --> 00:12:18,345 but trying to convince 376 00:12:18,659 --> 00:12:20,440 others how important this is. 377 00:12:20,899 --> 00:12:22,679 Where where does your mind go to 378 00:12:23,059 --> 00:12:24,759 when when asked that question? 379 00:12:25,700 --> 00:12:28,279 You know, we're we we have so many 380 00:12:28,579 --> 00:12:29,079 individual 381 00:12:30,259 --> 00:12:32,500 student slash patient stories that make it an 382 00:12:32,500 --> 00:12:34,044 easy it's an easy story to tell. Like, 383 00:12:34,044 --> 00:12:34,544 there's 384 00:12:34,845 --> 00:12:36,524 no anyone with a heart will tell you, 385 00:12:36,524 --> 00:12:37,965 like, gosh. This is important, and we have 386 00:12:37,965 --> 00:12:39,004 to figure out how to fund it. So 387 00:12:39,004 --> 00:12:41,165 that's that's the easy part. Right? Is Sure. 388 00:12:41,245 --> 00:12:42,684 I can tell there's this, you know, there's 389 00:12:42,684 --> 00:12:43,665 a young girl. 390 00:12:44,044 --> 00:12:45,825 Her name is Stefania. And 391 00:12:46,285 --> 00:12:48,125 because of our program, she was really having 392 00:12:48,125 --> 00:12:50,919 trouble in school in terms of her behavior, 393 00:12:51,059 --> 00:12:52,440 in terms of her attendance. 394 00:12:53,620 --> 00:12:56,259 And through this program and the experts that 395 00:12:56,259 --> 00:12:58,179 are part of this program working with these 396 00:12:58,179 --> 00:12:58,679 kids, 397 00:12:59,379 --> 00:13:01,220 we discovered not only did she have some 398 00:13:01,220 --> 00:13:03,539 sort of mental behavioral health challenges, she also 399 00:13:03,539 --> 00:13:05,575 had poor eyesight and poor 400 00:13:06,115 --> 00:13:07,634 hearing. So we worked with her to get 401 00:13:07,634 --> 00:13:09,554 her, you know, glasses and get her, 402 00:13:10,195 --> 00:13:11,335 hearing aid, 403 00:13:12,595 --> 00:13:14,995 and then focus on some of the behavioral 404 00:13:14,995 --> 00:13:16,134 mental components. 405 00:13:17,315 --> 00:13:19,269 This was a couple years ago, she's thriving. 406 00:13:19,269 --> 00:13:21,110 She, you know, she otherwise is probably a 407 00:13:21,110 --> 00:13:23,750 child who, you know, we was on a 408 00:13:23,750 --> 00:13:25,429 trajectory to drop out of school and not, 409 00:13:25,429 --> 00:13:27,750 you know, not complete her education. So there's 410 00:13:27,750 --> 00:13:28,950 about a 100,000,000 411 00:13:28,950 --> 00:13:30,549 stories now. That's probably a bit of an 412 00:13:30,549 --> 00:13:32,149 exaggeration. But we have so many stories like 413 00:13:32,149 --> 00:13:32,774 that where, 414 00:13:33,335 --> 00:13:35,175 it's the it's going into the schools, getting 415 00:13:35,175 --> 00:13:37,095 kids where they're at, meeting kids where they're 416 00:13:37,095 --> 00:13:39,175 at, and getting them the services and health 417 00:13:39,175 --> 00:13:40,315 care that they need, 418 00:13:41,014 --> 00:13:43,095 and keeping them in school, helping them stay 419 00:13:43,095 --> 00:13:45,495 educated, keeping them healthy, preventing them from coming 420 00:13:45,495 --> 00:13:46,235 to the hospital. 421 00:13:46,695 --> 00:13:47,915 Yeah. And so, 422 00:13:48,830 --> 00:13:50,690 so that story is pretty 423 00:13:51,309 --> 00:13:53,549 fun to tell and easy for people to 424 00:13:53,549 --> 00:13:55,950 understand. And so I'm confident that we're gonna 425 00:13:55,950 --> 00:13:57,629 find ways to fund this program and which 426 00:13:57,629 --> 00:13:58,990 is gonna grow the way we want it 427 00:13:58,990 --> 00:14:00,830 to because it is such an easy story 428 00:14:00,830 --> 00:14:01,710 to tell, but it is, 429 00:14:02,454 --> 00:14:04,054 as you say, we are on the phone 430 00:14:04,054 --> 00:14:06,554 and in, face to face discussions with, 431 00:14:07,095 --> 00:14:07,815 all of our, 432 00:14:08,294 --> 00:14:08,794 advocacy 433 00:14:09,254 --> 00:14:10,235 experts and legislators, 434 00:14:10,774 --> 00:14:12,934 trying to make sure that every kid has 435 00:14:12,934 --> 00:14:15,014 the access to so they can be another 436 00:14:15,014 --> 00:14:16,529 story like the one I just shared. 437 00:14:17,090 --> 00:14:18,850 Gotcha. No. Thank you so much for sharing 438 00:14:18,850 --> 00:14:20,450 that, Matt. And it I think it really 439 00:14:20,450 --> 00:14:21,509 shines a light on 440 00:14:21,970 --> 00:14:22,710 the interconnectivity 441 00:14:23,330 --> 00:14:23,830 between 442 00:14:24,290 --> 00:14:26,610 education and health care, which I think is 443 00:14:26,610 --> 00:14:28,230 becoming much more of, 444 00:14:28,850 --> 00:14:30,070 an initiative that 445 00:14:30,584 --> 00:14:32,745 health systems like yourself want to take on 446 00:14:32,745 --> 00:14:34,764 and rightfully so because I think it's 447 00:14:35,225 --> 00:14:37,704 as you know, it's beneficial to to patients 448 00:14:37,704 --> 00:14:38,684 in so many ways. 449 00:14:39,704 --> 00:14:41,485 Lastly, Matt, you mentioned 450 00:14:41,865 --> 00:14:44,044 so many opportunities that 451 00:14:44,389 --> 00:14:46,490 many children many family children 452 00:14:46,950 --> 00:14:47,450 has 453 00:14:48,389 --> 00:14:50,809 for growth. Are there any that you wanna 454 00:14:50,870 --> 00:14:53,429 spotlight now in addition to the Thrive Kids 455 00:14:53,429 --> 00:14:55,769 program? I absolutely. So, 456 00:14:56,470 --> 00:14:58,629 one and I think I briefly mentioned this, 457 00:14:58,629 --> 00:15:00,314 but I would I wanna highlight the work 458 00:15:00,314 --> 00:15:01,514 that the team is doing because I think 459 00:15:01,514 --> 00:15:03,595 it's I think it's probably one of our, 460 00:15:03,834 --> 00:15:06,394 biggest opportunities for growth, and that's in our 461 00:15:06,394 --> 00:15:08,095 center for cancer and blood disorders, 462 00:15:08,954 --> 00:15:11,834 and specifically sickle cell patients. So we have 463 00:15:11,834 --> 00:15:13,995 a high number of sickle cell patients in 464 00:15:13,995 --> 00:15:14,735 this region, 465 00:15:15,309 --> 00:15:16,769 high population. And 466 00:15:17,149 --> 00:15:19,389 we are the only accredited program in Louisiana 467 00:15:19,389 --> 00:15:21,250 for pediatric stem cell transplant. 468 00:15:21,789 --> 00:15:23,870 Also, the only program in Louisiana and really 469 00:15:23,870 --> 00:15:26,110 the Gulf South approved for gene therapy treatment, 470 00:15:26,110 --> 00:15:28,669 which is life changing, life saving, both of 471 00:15:28,669 --> 00:15:29,329 those are. 472 00:15:29,634 --> 00:15:30,454 And so, 473 00:15:31,315 --> 00:15:33,574 we are we've seen tremendous growth, 474 00:15:34,034 --> 00:15:35,875 as we've grown the you know, grown that 475 00:15:35,875 --> 00:15:36,375 program, 476 00:15:37,154 --> 00:15:38,914 and I just I it's it's I mean, 477 00:15:38,914 --> 00:15:40,995 I it feels, you know, it's such so 478 00:15:40,995 --> 00:15:41,954 cool to be a part of this. We're, 479 00:15:41,954 --> 00:15:43,654 like, medical, you know, history. 480 00:15:44,570 --> 00:15:46,250 We're we're we're on the early, you know, 481 00:15:46,250 --> 00:15:47,769 we're in the early phase of that. It's 482 00:15:47,769 --> 00:15:49,529 really fun to watch and, 483 00:15:50,009 --> 00:15:51,610 you know, nice to see that the again, 484 00:15:51,610 --> 00:15:53,230 that Gulf South from Louisiana, 485 00:15:53,529 --> 00:15:55,610 Mississippi, even in the parts of Alabama and 486 00:15:55,610 --> 00:15:56,750 the Florida Panhandle, 487 00:15:57,835 --> 00:16:00,715 geographically closer to New Orleans than many of 488 00:16:00,715 --> 00:16:03,035 the other major metropolitan areas and being able 489 00:16:03,035 --> 00:16:03,535 to, 490 00:16:04,475 --> 00:16:08,154 provide these life changing, life altering, truly life 491 00:16:08,154 --> 00:16:09,134 saving services, 492 00:16:09,914 --> 00:16:10,414 for 493 00:16:10,730 --> 00:16:13,710 our, cancer patients, but specifically our sickle cell 494 00:16:13,769 --> 00:16:14,750 patient population 495 00:16:15,210 --> 00:16:18,009 is amazing. Our team is fantastic, and I 496 00:16:18,009 --> 00:16:20,090 believe that that's where, you know, maybe the 497 00:16:20,090 --> 00:16:21,769 next time we talk, I'll be I'll be 498 00:16:21,769 --> 00:16:23,475 bragging about some major growth, 499 00:16:24,514 --> 00:16:26,355 that we're seeing there because it's it's a 500 00:16:26,355 --> 00:16:28,914 fantastic program and something so much needed especially 501 00:16:28,914 --> 00:16:30,434 for kids in this particular region of the 502 00:16:30,434 --> 00:16:30,934 country. 503 00:16:31,875 --> 00:16:33,794 I certainly hope so, Matt. That's the greatest 504 00:16:33,794 --> 00:16:36,929 reason as any to be proud of. Right? 505 00:16:37,169 --> 00:16:37,669 So, 506 00:16:38,049 --> 00:16:39,809 yeah, Matt, thank you so much for being 507 00:16:39,809 --> 00:16:41,889 on the podcast today and sharing everything going 508 00:16:41,889 --> 00:16:43,409 on. Well, a lot of things. Maybe not 509 00:16:43,409 --> 00:16:45,350 everything, but so many of the great things 510 00:16:45,490 --> 00:16:47,809 going on down at Manning Family Children's. Yeah. 511 00:16:47,809 --> 00:16:49,409 We can't wait to see you when you're 512 00:16:49,409 --> 00:16:51,089 here in April for our conference and any 513 00:16:51,089 --> 00:16:52,710 other time from here after that. 514 00:16:53,144 --> 00:16:54,985 Thank you, Chris. I appreciate the invite to 515 00:16:54,985 --> 00:16:56,345 to share a little bit more about what's 516 00:16:56,345 --> 00:16:57,705 going on here, and I look forward to 517 00:16:57,705 --> 00:16:58,605 seeing you in April.