Today Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy (PPMD) announced the expansion of our renowned Certified Duchenne Care Center Program (CDCCP) with the certification of the clinic at Children’s Health in Dallas and UT Southwestern Medical Center (Children’s Health and UT Southwestern). This is an exciting step for the CDCCP as it is the first certification in the state of Texas, and only the second CDCC in the South Central U.S.

Kathi Kinnett, MSN, APRN, PPMD’s Clinical Care Advisor, says that the addition of Children’s Health and UT Southwestern is an important step in bringing standardized Duchenne care to Texas and the greater region:

“The team in Dallas has shown immense dedication to Duchenne care and growth in their Duchenne program over the last several years, and has worked closely with the CDCC Certification Committee to meet the robust standards of certification. We’re thrilled to certify their center and recognize the great work they are doing for the Duchenne community in Texas.”

Children’s Health and UT Southwestern join the network as the 29^th Certified Duchenne Care Center.

Children’s Health is the eighth largest pediatric health care provider in the nation, with a neuromuscular center serving approximately 300 dystrophinopathy patients and families. Patients at Children’s Health are seen by physicians from UT Southwestern, one of the premier academic medical centers in the nation, which operates the Wellstone Muscular Dystrophy Center with funding from the National Institutes of Health.

Led by Drs. Susan Iannaccone and Diana Castro, Children’s Health and UT Southwestern developed an Adolescent Comprehensive Clinic, then worked hard to develop the same level of care and services for patients now seen in the Comprehensive Clinic for the Young. They are home to numerous clinical trials and a number of other clinical research projects. PPMD is thrilled to include Children’s Health and UT Southwestern in their growing network of Certified Duchenne Care Centers.

“We are very excited to have achieved this accomplishment. This is public recognition on a national basis for the excellence of our program. It means we are considered by a large community of Duchenne families to be equal to other leading centers.”

— Dr. Iannaccone, Associate Director of the Wellstone Muscular Dystrophy Center and Co-Director of the MDA Pediatric Care Center at Children’s Health

“The main advantage of being a Certified Duchenne Care Center is to provide assurance to the families we see that the care we provide meets national standards. This recognizes our neuromuscular team, but I also want to recognize the cardiology, pulmonology, endocrine, and orthopedic teams who allowed us to create and develop the multidisciplinary care for these patients.”

— Dr. Diana Castro, Pediatric Neurologist at Children’s Health and Assistant Professor at UT Southwestern

PPMD’s Certified Duchenne Care Center Program supports standardized, comprehensive care and services for all people living with Duchenne. Certification means centers maintain the highest standards in clinical and sub-specialty services, rapidly apply new evidence-based knowledge, minimize heterogeneity in clinical research outcomes, and comply with standards in clinical care that were established by the CDC’s Care Considerations. As part of its ongoing mission to end Duchenne, PPMD continues to insist that all people with Duchenne receive comprehensive care.

Rachel Schrader, MS, APRN, CPNP-PC, PPMD’s Senior Vice President of Clinical Care and Director of the CDCCP, is excited to fulfill the needs of Texas families with this newly certified center:

“PPMD and the CDCC Certification Committee are incredibly proud of the work that the Children’s Medical Center Dallas team has put into certification. They have a compassionate, expert team that will work tirelessly to meet the needs of their patients and families. We look forward to a close working relationship, in both care and clinical trials, for many years to come.”

Support for PPMD’s Certified Duchenne Care Center Program is provided, in part, by Whataburger which, through a consumer promotion program in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, sponsored last year’s Coach To Cure MD event in an effort to expand optimal care to Texas families.

To learn more about PPMD’s Certified Duchenne Care Center Program, visit PPMD’s website. Click here to learn more about the history of PPMD’s Certified Duchenne Care Center Program and to access PPMD’s first published article on the program.