UTMB President Dr. David L. Callender spent a day alongside Petra Benavides of Transportation Services as she made her rounds in his most recent In Your Shoes event. Transportation Services performs 600 to 700 patient transports per day moving patients from their hospital rooms to various areas around the hospital including radiology, endoscopy, cardiac cath lab and labor and delivery. The department is also responsible for transporting specimens, linen, mail and material management supplies internally and externally to 25 UTMB regional clinics, three Texas Department of Criminal Justice units and one federal prison in 22 cities. 

Callender was very impressed with the Transportation Services department saying, “Transporters are vital to maintaining patient flow, and they move at an incredibly fast pace. I was very impressed with the professionalism and dedication of the transportation workers.  They clearly demonstrate our UTMB values with the compassion, integrity and respect that they bring to their jobs.”

Benavides said she enjoyed the event and thought it was a good way for upper management to learn about what makes UTMB tick.

"I think Dr. Callender did a great job walking in my shoes. We walked from one end of the hospital to the next and he never missed a beat. I think it is important for him to see how the departments operate on a daily basis," Benavides said. "It was a great experience for me and I think he enjoyed it as well."