Texas Children's Hospital Receives 4.8 Million Dollar Transformational Corporate Gift to Fund Behavioral Health Initiative

THE WOODLANDS, TX -- Texas Children’s Hospital is thrilled to announce that Ovintiv Inc., a leading North American exploration and production company, has pledged 4.8 million to fund its new behavioral health Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) at Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands.

“We are so incredibly grateful for Ovintiv Inc.’s generosity,” said Dr. Kirti Saxena, Chief of Psychiatry at Texas Children’s Hospital and Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Baylor College of Medicine. “This IOP is desperately needed in the Woodlands, and we are committed to creating it because we believe that the behavioral and developmental health of children, adolescents and teens is just as important as their physical well-being. Ovintiv’s transformational gift will make a life-changing difference for so many patients and their families.”

"Our partnership with Texas Children’s Hospital is a natural fit,” said Brendan McCracken, President & CEO of Ovintiv. “Our strategic investment is part of a larger $10MM community initiative focused on supporting children's hospitals where we live and work. We seek partners and programs that embody our purpose and are aligned with our values and priorities. As a leading energy producer, we have the privilege of supporting the daily lifesaving work of our local children’s hospitals. We’re proud of the role our energy products play in making modern life possible.”

Ovintiv’s generous pledge makes them the first company member of the Council for Hope, Texas Children’s new Corporate Giving Society, whose fundraising priorities include supporting Texas Children’s behavioral health initiatives.

In 2022, Texas Children’s formed a dedicated Behavioral Health Task Force to implement new and expanded services for patients in need of specialized care. The goal was to meet patients where they are and to help address behavioral health issues as early as possible at each stage of the diagnosis and treatment continuum — before they escalate to the point where inpatient hospitalization is required.

The IOP, a direct outgrowth of these efforts, will close the gap between inpatient and outpatient behavioral health services. When patients and families seek care at local hospitals for behavioral and developmental health concerns, they typically receive crisis intervention upon entry to the hospital. Significant demand, however, can result in delays for the services they need, especially after they are discharged. The IOP will solve this problem by providing intermediary care for patients who cannot perform successfully in their current settings but do not need inpatient psychiatric hospitalization. It will support these patients through skill-based intensive therapy sessions that teach strategies to reduce symptoms and improve functioning within a flexible structure that allows patients to live at home and continue school and family activities.

Designed to accommodate patients discharged from Texas Children’s Emergency Centers and from inpatient units — and to provide step-down care to outpatient services for patients who have other medical issues plus behavioral health issues — the IOP will provide an array of services customized to meet each patient’s and family’s specific needs. These include individual, group and family therapy, art and music therapy programs and yoga and recreational therapy. Officially slated to open in early 2024, the IOP will treat patients for up to four to five hours a day.