“Today at 12 p.m. CT, there is a national movement — White Coats for Black Lives — encouraging health care providers to take a moment of silent reflection and commitment to improve the health and safety of people of color, in honor of George Floyd. I encourage all Texas Health Resources employees, physicians on our medical staff and those in our facilities to participate, if they feel moved to do so.

This is an appeal for an end to systemic racism and discrimination in our country. As caregivers, injustice is an issue that we cannot ignore. We are trained to recognize when there is an illness, and then work together to make things better. We pour our hearts and souls into healing our patients of the injuries we see every day in our emergency rooms, hospitals, outpatient centers and physician’s offices. But we must also recognize the violence and oppression against people because of the way they look — because of the color of their skin — that is playing out on our television sets, in our communities and perhaps even in our own lives.

At Texas Health, we reject racism, bigotry and discrimination in all their forms. We nurture our neighbors' health and well-being, caring for mind, body and spirit.

We kneel today with the rest of our country to acknowledge this ill that runs through our society. As caregivers, we commit to healing and changing our communities and ourselves.”