Feature

As the largest medical training institution in Fort Worth, learning and training are the heart of JPS Health Network. Ten academic residency programs and four fellowship programs exist at JPS to meet the healthcare needs of Tarrant County. The programs offered range from one to five years for residents, and one to two years for fellows.

“Residents are critical to our healthcare team and providing the best care for our patients and our community,” says Dr. Tricia Elliott, Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs and Research Affairs for JPS.

Cassie Lyell, DNP, RN, TCRN decided she wanted to be part of JPS Health Network when she arrived in 2001 as a nursing student at TCU, doing clinical rotations and learning from veteran nurses in Surgical Services, the Intensive Care Unit, and the Orthopaedic/Neurosurgical Unit.

Her long list of JPS mentors have shared their knowledge and skills and supported her professional growth.

Melissa Nightingale was introduced to the biomedical engineering field in college, when her physics professor noted that she was a “why kid” – someone who is curious about finding things out.

“I always wanted to go into the hospital field. There is a great need there,” she said. “I like to help people and my job allows me to do that. I know that I can make a patient’s life a little easier by taking great care of the medical equipment at JPS.”

Logan Nettles is a successful graduate of both the JPS Healthcare Administrative Internship and the JPS Healthcare Administrative Fellowship. Both programs provide hands-on learning experiences and the opportunity to develop a greater understanding of hospital operations at the network.

Shelly Howard had heard how wonderful JPS Health Network was when she first moved to the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Previous coworkers told her what a great place this was and she made the decision to join the JPS team in June of 2016.

Angie Morgan, Executive Director of Planning, Design, and Construction at JPS, says she is the personification of the opportunities JPS has to offer team members. She arrived at JPS back in November 1992 as a single mom who needed a steady income, but she didn’t want to be in the direct construction market.

Lucy Semple says the transformation she has seen over eight years at JPS is “truly miraculous.” Semple, who joined JPS in February 2014, is the Manager of Clinical Quality, supervising a team focused on reviewing patient charts for both accuracy and quality of care issues.

Imagine a 16-ounce water bottle. Now, imagine 977 of those water bottles, this represents the amount of blood used by JPS Health Network in January alone – a total of 977 units in 31 days.

COVID-19 has had a damaging impact on blood drives. Since the beginning of the pandemic, blood drive coordinators have seen a significant decrease in donations and blood drive success – a daunting situation for a Level I Trauma Center like JPS.

And with the last blood drive eight months ago, the need for blood at JPS is crucial.

Tarrant County Commissioners heard a recommendation for a new JPS Health Network medical home to be built this year, the first of four medical homes included in the JPS Bond Program, an $800-million bond construction project to update JPS facilities.

A specific site has not yet been determined for the medical home, JPS President and Chief Executive Officer Karen Duncan, MD, told the Tarrant County Commissioners Court in a briefing on Jan. 11, 2022. That decision will involve the Commissioners as the process moves forward.

The Leapfrog "A" Grade was years in the making, and by design

The announcement that JPS Health Network has earned a coveted "A" rating for patient safety came as welcome, but not surprising news for the team inside JPS. It was a payoff after years of intentional and dedicated work to improve.

This grade marks a high point in years of effort by JPS to improve its patient care, safety, quality, and experience.