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Meet Malachi – The 13-year-old Motivational Speaker

Meet Malachi – The 13-year-old Motivational Speaker

by | Aug 15, 2018 | General News, Press Coverage

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DALLAS – Some people’s first thought when they hear about a 13-year-old motivational speaker is probably, “What could I possibly learn from a 13-year-old?”

If that’s what crosses your mind, it’s time to think twice. Malachi Walker was born in 2005, but he has the kind of wisdom some people born in 1975 could use. “My goal with the book is helping other people accomplish their goals and get out of their bad situations,” he explained.

Malachi wrote The Boomerang Effect, which he explains is “the strategy to help you shatter your glass ceiling.” “What you sow you will reap and what you throw you will keep,” he said. “That’s what the boomerang effect is. Your choices come back to you.”

He’s not only an author, but he’s also a budding motivational speaker. At Scottish Rite Hospital’s recent annual book sale, Malachi read and signed The Boomerang Effect for a captive audience of patients and families.

The book features an appropriate title for the speaking appearance, as he was back at the place it all began.

Scottish Rite doctors diagnosed Malachi with a knee problem that kept him out of soccer, his greatest passion, for 13 months. But during those 13 months, he wrote his book. His mother Christina and father Charlie were supportive, but surprised. “When he first told us that he wanted to be a motivational speaker, I remember looking at Charlie, you know – when [Malachi] wasn’t looking at us – and my eyes got really big, and I thought, ‘OK we’re going to help you do that!’

The book is also about being kind, because Malachi has realized how you treat people has an impact on how they treat you in return. That is a lesson the Walkers have worked hard to teach their children. “You never know if they’re going to pick up what you teach them,” Christina said. “It’s neat to see him grab something and do something with it.”

Malachi is practicing his motivational speaking skills by regularly posting videos on his YouTube channel.

Oklahoma girl with rare bone disease designs super hero casts

Oklahoma girl with rare bone disease designs super hero casts

by | Jul 6, 2018 | General News, Press Coverage

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CLEVELAND, Oklahoma –

An 8-year-old girl, who’s had more than 40 broken bones in her young life, got something special during her most  recent surgery.

Doctors diagnosed Courtney White with a rare bone disease when she was just a baby after she broke her femur twice in a matter of months.

The condition cause her bones to break easily, which means she spends a lot of time wearing casts.

Her most recent casts – one on each leg – feature Courtney as a super hero.

Courtney now has rod in every major bone in both legs. And doctors recently had to replace a rod in one shin and put a rod in the other.

Before the surgery, doctors at the Texas Scottish Rite Hospital in Dallas challenged Courtney to design her own cast. She drew up Wonder Woman boots because she’s a little warrior.

Her family will tell you, Courtney is a super hero in their eyes every day.

She has Osteogenesis Imperfecta, Type 6. Experts say only 6 to 7 people out of every 100,000 have OI and of those, only 1-percent lives with Type 6.

“We have found that each day is a new experience. We never know day to day what her mobility will look like or what her pain level will be or if we will have another injury,” her dad Justin White said. “That has been life for Courtney, it’s her normal and she has learned to embrace it.”

Courtney has broken 40 bones and has gone through 12 surgeries.

But despite all that, she still lives for adventure. She likes to hunt and fish and spend time with her mom, dad and big sister.

“She knows there are some things that she just won’t be able to do, but she also knows that there are many things that she can do, she’s just going to have to work harder for them than most people,” Justin said. “We’ve tried to teach her not to feel sorry for herself, but instead, accept things as they come and work through them.”

And that’s how she lives her life. He says Courtney is always positive, cheerful and faces every challenge head on – with unflinching faith.

A few days before Courtney’s most recent surgery her grandpa overheard her saying this prayer, “Father, thank you for this wonderful world that I live in, and thank you for my wonderful life. I love you so much, because everything you do is wonderful.”

Her dad says that’s Courtney, the bravest, toughest person he’s ever known.

“Her bones make break often, but her spirit and her faith never do,” her dad said.

1968-2018: Celebrating 50 Years Since the First Consensus Definition of Dyslexia

1968-2018: Celebrating 50 Years Since the First Consensus Definition of Dyslexia

by | Apr 5, 2018 | General News

Over 50 years ago, the Luke Waites Center for Dyslexia & Learning Disorders was established to provide treatment and guidance to children with learning disorders. 

This week, the hospital is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the World Federation of Neurology’s meeting which formulated the first consensus definition of Dyslexia. In April of 1968, the first meeting of the World Federation of Neurology’s Research Group on Developmental Dyslexia and World Illiteracy took place at Scottish Rite Hospital. Below is the definition that was approved by the group in 1968:

Specific Development Dyslexia
A disorder manifested by difficulty in learning to ready despite conventional instruction, adequate intelligence, and socio-cultural opportunity. It is dependent upon fundamental cognitive disabilities which are frequently of constitutional origin. 

Throughout the decades, the Luke Waites Center for Dyslexia & Learning Disorders has grown to become the premier learning facility for both children diagnosed with a learning disorder and therapists in training. Director of the Center Gladys Kolenovsky, has witnessed the impact this group of experts has made on this patient population. “Since the beginning, we have been dedicated to giving children with dyslexia the tools and confidence to be successful both in school and in life,” says Kolenvosky. “As we embark on this 50-year milestone, it gives us a moment to reflect and give thanks to the group who gathered to define dyslexia and from that day has enhanced the care for these children.” 

Learn more about the Luke Waites Center for Dyslexia & Learning Disorders Center. 

WFAA: Ideas that pop: Children’s hospital using popcorn to transform patient experience

WFAA: Ideas that pop: Children’s hospital using popcorn to transform patient experience

by | Jan 25, 2018 | General News, Press Coverage

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When you walk through the doors or Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children the first thing you notice is the buttery smell. 

“My kids think of the movies they don’t think of a hospital,” John Dailey remarked as he walked in with his two daughters.

The girls promptly made a bee line for the popcorn stand and handed over a quarter to volunteer Letecia Desaloms who stays busy filling bags. 

“The smile on a child’s face is what I love. I’ve worked in hospitals my whole life and this place is magic,” Desaloms said.

The girls’ father says one of his girls never runs but on this day she sprinted to the stand. The popcorn was a treat for the girl but seeing his daughter run was the real gift for her dad. 

The popcorn stand started decades ago. Patients, doctors and volunteers say it’s Dallas’ best popcorn and one of the best kept secrets across DFW.

While the snacks are delicious they serve another purpose, to send a subliminal message through smell that the children are somewhere fun. 

“We’ve had stories of children literally thinking they were going to an amusement park when they came here. They didn’t realize it was a hospital until they got older,” said Avery Wyatt who has been working at Scottish Rite for just over a year. 

While the popcorn may be the most delicious detail Scottish Rite is being studied by hospitals across the world for their attention to detail and building designs with patient experience in mind. 

“The architects who designed this build have become world famous for their work on children’s hospitals,” said Tony Herring a current surgeon and Scottish Rite’s former chief of staff.

The orthopedic nonprofit hospital also designed a system to make sure medical equipment is not seen in common and open spaces like hallways or waiting areas. Instead the equipment is kept in a central room that backs up to all exam rooms. Nurses and doctors bring the equipment into exam rooms through a separate door once patients are ready to be seen. 

The hospital also has a large playground out front, strategically placed so patients can see it from their hospital room windows. The park is also open to children who are not being treated at the hospital to make it more inclusive and more about fun. 

“I have worked here since 1975 and there’s no other place like it,” Herring said.

Other psychological designs include wide hallways and lots of big open spaces which the hospital says has been proven to  promote less stress for families. 

And everywhere you go one other thing is constant, that delicious popcorn smell.

“You know you’re here as soon as you take a deep breath,” Dailey said.

The hospital’s volunteers pop 6000 pounds every year and they have no plans on stopping anytime soon.

Corey S. Gill, M.D., M.A., joins Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children Surgical Team

Corey S. Gill, M.D., M.A., joins Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children Surgical Team

by | Jan 12, 2018 | General News, Press Coverage

(DALLAS – January 11, 2017) – Corey S. Gill, M.D., M.A., has joined the pediatric orthopedic surgical staff of Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children. Gill will lead the team for general orthopedics at the new Scottish Rite for Children Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Center opening in Frisco this fall. Until the new center opens, he will primarily see patients at the interim facility located in Plano. 
Gill comes to Scottish Rite Hospital from private practice at Southwest Pediatric Orthopedics here in Dallas. In addition to his role at Southwest Pediatric Orthopedics, Gill also served as the Medical Director of Pediatric Orthopedics at Medical City Dallas. During his time as director, he helped guide Medical City’s transition from a Level III to Level II Trauma Center for pediatric orthopedics. 

“Dr. Gill first came to Scottish Rite Hospital for his fellowship in 2012,” says Daniel J. Sucato, M.D., M.S., Scottish Rite Hospital Chief of Staff. “Seeing his skills flourish during his fellowship, and in his post-fellowship practice here in Dallas, has been an honor. It’s exciting to welcome him back as he returns to join our orthopedic surgical staff.

TEXAS SCOTTISH RITE HOSPITAL FOR CHILDREN. A man wearing a white coat with texas scottish rite hospital on it

Before completing Scottish Rite Hospital’s Dorothy & Bryant Edwards Fellowship in Orthopedics and Scoliosis in 2013, Gill attended medical school at Washington University in St. Louis where he earned both his doctor of medicine and master’s degree. He completed his orthopedic surgical residency at the Washington University in St. Louis’ Department of Orthopedics. 

“It’s an exciting time to be at Scottish Rite Hospital,” says Gill. “The world of medicine and health care is ever changing and Scottish Rite Hospital is positioned to remain at the forefront of both patient care and education.  The hospital provided me with a world-class fellowship training experience and I’m thrilled to be returning to the staff in a more permanent capacity.”

“Our highest priority at Scottish Rite Hospital is to provide world-class care to our patients,” says Robert L. Walker, Scottish Rite Hospital president/CEO. “Dr. Gill’s expertise and leadership experience will ensure our patients continue to receive the highest level of care possible. As our organization continues to expand, we are extremely pleased to have him join our staff during this significant period of growth.” 

Gill is actively involved in both the medical and local Dallas community. In addition to his role at Scottish Rite Hospital, he will also serve as an assistant professor in UT Southwestern’s Department of Orthopaedic Surgery. He is a member of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America and the Texas Medical Association. 

Read D CEO Healthcare’s article here. 

Scottish Rite Hospital Doctors Make Friendly Competition out of Dallas Marathon

Scottish Rite Hospital Doctors Make Friendly Competition out of Dallas Marathon

by | Dec 8, 2017 | General News, Press Coverage

It’s part tradition, part friendly competition: Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children’s faculty vs. fellows.

Teams of five will relay the 26.2-mile BMW Dallas Marathon on Sunday.

“There’s a fellow team every year made up of fellows who are training to become specialists in pediatric orthopedic surgery, and they compete every year against the faculty and staff who are their educators and mentors,” said orthopedic surgeon Anthony Riccio. 

Back in the day, Dr. Riccio ran on the fellows team. Since then, things have changed.

“Since 2010 I’ve been faculty, and now of course I’ve switched allegiances and run with the staff,” he said.

Their competition dates back at least 20 years that they know of, and almost every year, guess who’s come out on top? To see the full story, watch here.