Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy (PPMD) expands its 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).

According to a media release from PPMD, this is the first certification in the state of Texas, and only the second CDCC in the South Central US.

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

“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,” she says. “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 29th Certified Duchenne Care Center, per the release.

Patients at Children’s Health are seen by physicians from UT Southwestern, 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 developed the same level of care and services for patients now seen in the Comprehensive Clinic for the Young.

“We are very excited to have achieved this accomplishment,” says Iannaccone, Associate Director of the Wellstone Muscular Dystrophy Center and Co-Director of the MDA Pediatric Care Center at Children’s Health. “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.”

“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,” adds Castro, Pediatric Neurologist at Children’s Health and Assistant Professor at UT Southwestern, the release continues.

“PPMD and the CDCC Certification Committee are incredibly proud of the work that the Children’s Medical Center Dallas team has put into certification,” Rachel Schrader, MS, APRN, CPNP-PC, PPMD’s Senior Vice President of Clinical Care and Director of the CDCCP, comments in the release. “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.”

[Source(s): Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy, PR Newswire]