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Growing Resilience, 2025, side-view
No full textArtist(s): Philip Roberts
Materials: Copper, plant, soil
At first glance, this may appear to be a simple pot made of pennies — but it is, in truth, a sculpture with much deeper meaning. The approximately 1,500 corroded coins that form its walls were gathered from the fountains of MD Anderson. Over time, water and metal reacted, leaving them too damaged to be accepted by banks or coin machines (we tried). Rejected by systems of commerce, these coins have found a second purpose here.
Each penny once left someone’s hand with a wish — a wish for healing, for strength, for time. Some of those wishes ended in remission and reunion. Others in unimaginable loss. The weight of the sculpture reflects this sacred tension: the unimaginable joy of recovery, tethered to the quiet heaviness of grief.
Just as we all navigate light and darkness, sorrow and sweetness, transformation allows us to carry both — not by ignoring the contrast, but by growing within it. In the presence of both heartbreak and hope, something beautiful can still take root. There can be purpose in the heavy, and there can be beauty in the joy — not in spite of the struggle, but because life has grown through it.
The plant growing within — an Aglaonema ‘Siam Aurora Lipstick’ — is itself a survivor. It once grew in The Park, a special place that brought comfort and beauty to many before it was closed. Now, it thrives again, surrounded by the patina of wishes, reminding us that even in endings, there are new beginnings.
Every part of this piece is made from leftover materials (soil, a plastic pot, glue, pennies, and a plant). Nothing was purchased. It is a work of transformation — discarded elements becoming something purposeful, beautiful, and whole. Like the people this institution serves, it is a living testimony that resilience is not born from ease, but from endurance — from choosing to grow, again and again, in even the most unlikely places.https://openworks.mdanderson.org/recycledart2025/1053/thumbnail.jp
The Second Splash, 2025, close-up
No full textArtist(s): Timothy Coleman
Materials: Plastic, wood, aluminum
The piece is made from bread clips, aluminum pie pan, and a wooden shingle. The bread clips were slowly gathered for well over a year.https://openworks.mdanderson.org/recycledart2025/1047/thumbnail.jp
Dilbert the Armadillo, 2025, back-view
No full textArtist(s): Kayla Reyes
Materials: Cardboard, newspaper, glue
Sculpture and paper mache techniques using cardboard, newspaper and glue.https://openworks.mdanderson.org/recycledart2025/1044/thumbnail.jp
Childhood Memories, 2025, bicycle
No full textArtist(s): Camila Xavier
Materials: Plastic, paper, foil
This canvas set is designed using recycled materials typically left over after birthday parties—plastic cups and plates, napkins, foil, and pieces of used gift wrapping paper. The scene depicts a child\u27s playful day in Hermann Park.https://openworks.mdanderson.org/recycledart2025/1031/thumbnail.jp
The Use of Firgun to Improve Burnout and Workplace Civility in a Pediatric Cancer Center
Full text linkBurnout afflicts 35% to 44% of pediatric oncology physicians, nurses, and interprofessional staff and is related to excessive workloads and emotional exhaustion. Conversely, a healthy work environment is a protective factor for burnout among physicians and nurses. Meaningful recognition is a published standard necessary for creating a healthy work environment. This study aimed to reduce staff burnout through firgun, defined as a heartfelt way to express accomplishments of another person. Pediatric oncology staff completed a firgun educational module and logged acts of firgun during a 3-month study period. Validated measures assessing burnout, workplace civility, well-being, work-life balance, and perceived stress were completed before and after the intervention. Descriptive statistics were reported for participant demographics, firgun frequency, and survey scores at baseline and after the firgun intervention. Mixed-effects analysis of variance models of each survey in relation to pre- and post-intervention time points were used to assess pre-to-post changes. One hundred twelve participants completed baseline assessments, 88 completed the firgun education module, 62 logged firgun events, and 64 completed the follow-up measures. Logging of firgun decreased over time; however, significant improvements were noted on the workplace civility index scores (pre-intervention: 66% high civility, post pre-intervention: 77% high civility; P = .006); Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) depersonalization subscale (21.6% to 9.4%; P = .0001); and World Health Organization Well-Being Index (WHO-5) well-being item (28.4% poor to 15.6% poor; P = .0001). A trend of improvement in reported burnout on MBI was also found, from 48.9% to 36.5% (OR, 0.57; P = .09). In a single-arm cohort study of pediatric oncology interprofessional staff, the use of firgun—a simple, low-cost, and scalable intervention—was associated with improved workplace civility and well-being as well as reduced burnout. These preliminary findings suggest that firgun may positively impact the pediatric oncology work environment and staff wellness. However, the decline in logged firgun acts over time raises concerns about the sustainability of this effect. Future research should involve more rigorous testing with a well-defined control group to provide stronger evidence of its effectiveness
Unremitting
Full text linkA poem that describes the different stages of a patient’s cancer experience through metaphor and word play, exploring the myriad difficulties while also maintaining hope
Clinical Instructors in Gynecologic Oncology: Addressing Gaps in Cancer-Related Care and Gynecology Training Deficiencies
Full text linkThe shift toward minimally invasive techniques and sub-specialization in gynecology has reduced generalist surgical experience, prompting new training roles to better manage complex benign conditions and cancer survivorship
Illustrating Reach of Library Services
No full textThe Research Medical Library\u27s (RML) literature search and editing services are unique and provide quantifiable evidence of an information product that supports the institution’s mission. Librarians and editors collaborate with clinicians, researchers, and educators in various fields increase the dissemination and reach of the research. RML’s publication dashboard highlights library service activities and measures research outcomes. The RML uses this data to identify services patterns and trends and make data-driven decisions. Library Dashboard. from https://mdanderson.libguides.com/librarydashboardhttps://openworks.mdanderson.org/edwk25/1005/thumbnail.jp
Improving Patient Safety: Reducing ID Wristband Events via Standardized Education
No full texthttps://openworks.mdanderson.org/edwk25/1014/thumbnail.jp
Shortcuts Causing Bias in Medical AI
Full text linkJanuary 27, 2025
Judy W. Gichoya, MD, MSAssociate Professor of Interventional Radiology, Department of Radiology at Emory Universityhttps://openworks.mdanderson.org/igct_seminars/1018/thumbnail.jp