Communications

Texas Governor Greg Abbott recently directed state agencies to block TikTok on all state-owned and state-operated devices. The order is intended to minimize information security risks to state agencies related to use of the social media platform.

Along with successfully meeting our mission objectives of caring for patients, educating future health care providers and conducting life-saving research, we recognize the importance for UTMB to communicate publicly through various media outlets. Now more than ever, it’s imperative that we share factual, science-based information with our community and to do so; however, it is vital that we coordinate our communications efforts with UTMB’s Office of Media Relations.

President ad interim Charles P. Mouton announced two new ad interim leaders in the Academic Enterprise. Deborah J. Jones, PhD, MSN, RN, has agreed to serve as Provost ad interim. Jeffrey L. Susman, MD, has accepted the role of Dean ad interim, John Sealy School of Medicine (JSSOM). Both appointments are effective Sept. 22, 2022.

As we begin this new fiscal and academic year, Dr. Charles P. Mouton, President ad interim, shares a video message for the University of Texas Medical Branch community.

Due to our positive financial achievements thus far this fiscal year—and understanding the impact overall inflation and higher gas prices are having on personal budgets—the UTMB Executive Leadership team has decided to expedite payment of FY22 Team Awards on Friday, May 27.

This morning, at a small ceremony in the Old Red Amphitheater, a document was signed by officials from UT System, The Sealy & Smith Foundation and UTMB to officially change the name of our School of Medicine. I am very pleased to announce that, from this day forward, the University of Texas Medical Branch is home to the John Sealy School of Medicine.

I am very pleased to announce the next phase in the reorganization of our finance group. These changes will not only position UTMB Health for even greater success in the future but will allow us to make the best use of the considerable talents and skills among our finance leaders.

On November 30, 2021, the United States District Court, Western District of Louisiana, Monroe Division temporarily restrained CMS from implementing its vaccination mandate. This Court’s order applies nationwide to all health care providers, suppliers, owners, employees, and all others covered by the CMS vaccination mandate.

An update and some reminders regarding the federal COVID-19 vaccine mandate from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for all UTMB employees, students/trainees, volunteers and contractors.

On Nov. 4, 2021, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued its Health Care Staff Vaccination Interim Final Rule, which applies to all Medicare and Medicaid-certified providers and supplier types, such as UTMB. As a result, UTMB currently intends to comply with this Federal emergency regulation and requirements related to the COVID-19 vaccine mandates.

I am pleased to announce that we will be providing Team Awards to eligible employees this year. UTMB’s Team Award program recognizes the efforts and contributions of employees toward the achievement of specific institutional goals and objectives. This year, we achieved institutional financial goals in a very challenging environment. The university will issue a one-time, discretionary payment of $1,000 on Nov. 12, 2021, to employees who meet the eligibility criteria.

Effective immediately, Aaron LeMay, Vice President for Financial Accounting and Reporting, will serve as Interim Chief Financial Officer. Vice presidents within Institutional Finance now report to Aaron

Today marks the 130th anniversary of UTMB’s first class. To honor and celebrate the people who have made—and are making—continued progress of our mission possible, Dr. Raimer shared a special video message.

George Gaddie has been named Vice President for Information Services and Chief Information Officer, effective immediately. George had been serving in the role on an interim basis since February.

To minimize the risk to UTMB’s mission from ransomware attacks and other cyberthreats such as phishing, UTMB Information Technology Services and Information Security teams are fortifying our cyberdefenses.

To honor those who have made this tremendous year of service possible, we will recognize the collective efforts and contributions of our workforce thus far in FY21 with a one-time $1,000 Team Award payment to benefits-eligible employees.

In consultation with our infection control, clinical and research experts who have been on the frontlines of the fight against COVID-19 and in keeping with recommendations from public health officials, UTMB leadership has decided that our current masking policy will remain in effect at all UTMB locations to protect the health of the university community and everyone we serve.

Interim leaders named to Chief of Staff and Chief Information Officer roles as Sheila Lidstone and Todd Leach each announce their departures from UTMB.

On Dec. 15, UTMB will begin administering the first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to our “first tier” health care workers—those frontline employees who are at elevated risk for occupational exposure to the virus. To make the best use of limited initial supplies, we are following CDC and state guidelines to first vaccinate health care workers and first responders at highest risk of direct occupational exposure to COVID-19. This ensures we all have access to their expertise when we need it. Groups with the next-highest level of risk will be next, and so on.

I am writing to share some positive news with you about UTMB’s financial status. For the month of October, UTMB performed better than budget. In fact, our budget called for a positive margin of $3.9 million, but our actual margin for the month was $12.9 million, or $9 million better than expected.

Video message in honor of UTMB employees and students who have served in the U.S. Military.

As of this morning, UTMB has notified Aetna that we intend to terminate our commercial insurance contract with the company in 180 days. This means we will no longer be an in-network provider for patients who have Aetna commercial insurance as of May 6, 2021.

I am pleased to announce that Desolyn Foy will be joining UTMB on Nov. 2, 2020, as Vice President, Audit Services. As Vice President, Audit Services, Desolyn will lead our efforts to continually evaluate and measure the effectiveness of our risk management activities and internal controls.

Dr. Peter Kan, who joined UTMB in July as the inaugural chair of our new Department of Neurosurgery, has been formally named the Robert L. Moody, Sr. Distinguished University Chair.

We are very pleased to announce that Dr. Pei-Yong Shi, professor in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and vice chair for Innovation and Commercialization, has been named the inaugural holder of the John Sealy Distinguished Chair in Innovations in Molecular Biology at UTMB.

This message from Dr. Ben Raimer, UTMB's President ad interim, expresses thanks to the UTMB community for a job well-done in response to Hurricane Laura.

A message from Dr. Ben Raimer, UTMB's President ad interim, regarding UTMB's financial health in the COVID-19 era.

Our region continues to see concerning increases in the number of COVID-19 cases, the percentage of tests that come back positive each day, and the number of related hospitalizations. We must ALL take action against this growth trend. Now. Click the title to read about the simple actions you can take to work together to protect you and those around you.

As those of us in health care know, COVID-19 is advancing rapidly throughout our region and state. We must all act now—and continue to act—to lessen the threat to our communities. This means setting a good example regarding social distancing, hand hygiene, self-isolating when ill and wearing masks in public spaces, both at work and on our personal time. We must also serve as advocates for good public health practices. To that end, I have submitted the following message to area newspapers to help educate everyone on the importance of masks and other safety measures. Click title above to read the message from UTMB President ad interim Dr. Ben Raimer.

As I am sure many of you are, I am deeply saddened by recent events in our nation that, once again, have underscored how far we are from achieving a truly inclusive society. None of us should have to fear for our lives when interacting with others—or while in the privacy of our own homes. While hate and racism are part of our nation’s history, they have no place in shaping our country’s future.

UTMB's Telecommuting Task Force is surveying employees to better understand employees' views regarding working remotely. Individuals will be surveyed in phases and are encouraged to express their thoughts on telecommuting, potentially as a permanent component of UTMB’s work schedule in the future.

The U.S. Department of Education (DOE) recently requested documentation from both UTMB and UT System regarding contractual and other funding relationships with foreign entities. UTMB, by statute, submits documentation annually to the DOE, and we are fully complying with this recent request.

In this video message UTMB President ad interim Dr. Ben Raimer speaks about how we are keeping our patients and employees SAFE at UTMB during COVID-19 and beyond.

In this message, President ad Interim Dr. Ben Raimer addresses the financial hardships facing UTMB as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and the steps we're taking to close the gap.

To help meet the needs our workforce, UTMB has enhanced its emergency leave benefit to provide eligible employees up to 80 hours of paid leave for qualifying COVID-19-related reasons. It also ensures those granted time off will receive 100% of their base pay rate for those hours, as opposed to a calculated pay rate with daily and total dollar limits prescribed by the Families First Coronavirus Response Act.

During this time of unprecedented uncertainty and stress, it is essential that we take good care of ourselves and our families so that we can continue to support our patients and each other. To that end, UTMB has established an Employee Wellness Task Force, under the guidance of Human Resources and the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. This group will be providing resources, updates and general information to all of us in the coming weeks to help us stay emotionally healthy during this crisis.

For the safety of our faculty, staff, students, patients and visitors and to ensure that we remain prepared to serve those who need our care, the university is strongly discouraging all personal domestic and international travel due to COVID-19. This recommendation is in addition to recently announced business travel restrictions. (You can find a summary of related travel restrictions and requirements on our COVID-19 web site.)

UTMB is working with federal, state, UT System and local collaborators as we monitor the COVID-19 developments. We are now aware of new cases of COVID-19 in our region, which makes our need for more local action and prevention policies imperative.

The University of Texas Medical Branch community was saddened to learn of the passing of President George H.W. Bush on Nov. 30. As a military veteran, Governor Greg Abbott has declared that tomorrow—Wednesday, December 5, 2018—will be an official Day of Mourning in Texas.

I am very pleased to announce that, at a ceremony last night, UTMB was named a winner of the prestigious 2018 Vizient Bernard A. Birnbaum, MD, Quality Leadership Award. We are one of 11 academic health science centers in the U.S. to be honored.

We recently began a new fiscal year after an active and challenging FY18—a year marked by great change but also great accomplishment throughout the university. In keeping with our commitment to reward outstanding work, I am pleased to announce that merit pay increases and TEAM Award payments will be effective in November for eligible employees.