Driscoll Children’s Hospital’s success fuels greater ambition for surgeons

For years, Dr. Kevin Hopkins and his partner, Dr. Vanessa Dimas, have been the only two specialists covering the South Texas region — a territory that spans south of San Antonio and Houston to the Mexican border.

With 1 in 600 children in the United States born with a cleft lip and/or palate, and South Texas home to one of the fastest-growing pediatric populations in the state, the need for specialized care is significant. Dr. Hopkins and Dr. Dimas have been meeting that need by flying to outlying clinics and relying on telemedicine — often reaching families with no means to travel to the hospital.

Because of this need, community fundraising becomes critical. For a department serving a population where about 80% of patients are on Medicaid, outside donations are what makes expansion possible.

Every year, Driscoll Children's Hospital hosts Fiesta de los Niños, a fundraiser that directly benefits pediatric care for the growing population of South Texas. Over its 30-year history, Fiesta de los Niños has generated roughly $15 million for Driscoll Children's Hospital, with 100% of proceeds going directly to patient care.

This year, funds will go toward expanding the craniofacial, cleft and plastic surgery department. Such donations have sustained the hospital since its very origin, when Clara Driscoll left her fortune to establish a charitable hospital for families who couldn’t otherwise afford quality care.

"It's a really amazing charter just to serve everybody here in South Texas," Dr. Hopkins said.

A visible difference, a lasting impact

The challenges encountered by children with visible facial differences go beyond their looks. These differences can affect how they see themselves in the world.

"It's tough enough to be a child these days, let alone have any kind of difference," Dr. Hopkins said. "As much as possible, we want to help these children normalize and make them feel comfortable about themselves."

Speech is also a critical issue for Dr. Hopkins' patients. "It breaks my heart," he said of patients who struggle with speech. "They might have a little facial difference, and on top of that, if they sound different, automatically they're a target."

The cruelest part, Dr. Hopkins said, is that these children have so much to offer — if only they felt confident enough to raise their voices.

"No one wants to be the different one."

"They may not speak up, and these are really smart kids out there."

That's why targeted funding makes all the difference. "If we can have someone earmark a specific donation for things we're working on, that just makes it so much easier and so much better," Dr. Hopkins said. "That donor can actually see the progress of what we're doing."

A new era for the department

Over the years, specialists at Driscoll's craniofacial, cleft and plastic surgery department have done innovative work. Last April marked the 10-year anniversary of the team’s successful separation of a pair of conjoined twins — a landmark moment for the hospital.

Dr. Hopkins is also currently developing a novel use for a device called the Thermi, typically used for cosmetic skin tightening, to treat hemangiomas (birthmarks). So far, the team has found real success shrinking them down, as Dr. Hopkins shared at the prestigious ISSVA World Meeting in Philadelphia this past May. He will again be presenting these findings closer to home at the American Society of Plastic Surgeons’ national meeting in Houston this coming fall.

"We're always trying to find a new procedure that will be helpful to our patients and minimize pain or surgery," Dr. Hopkins said.

Now, with new funding, Dr. Hopkins is focused on expanding what the department can offer. One planned addition is a 3D imaging camera to better track patients before and after their procedures. "You can really tell our success and how we're doing it, or just improve upon the techniques we are doing," Dr. Hopkins added. "That's more for the cleft lip and for noses and for skulls."

The department is also eyeing a microneedling machine — a technology commonly associated with cosmetic procedures — to address scarring in pediatric patients post-surgery. For a population of children already navigating visible differences, minimizing scarring can make a meaningful impact on their confidence and quality of life.

Speech therapy is another area Dr. Hopkins wants to expand. "Speech therapy and cleft palates go hand in hand," he said. "Children always need some type of speech therapy afterward because they have to relearn how to speak." He hopes that new ultrasound technology could help therapists better track a patient's progress.

But perhaps the most pressing need is one the department has felt for over a decade. "We critically need a full-time orthodontist," Dr. Hopkins said. "All the cleft lip and palate kids always have dental problems and tooth problems."

Looking ahead

Dr. Hopkins envisions big things for Driscoll's craniofacial department. "I would love to be a leader in regenerative medicine," he said. Incorporating 3D bioprinting, unique biologic scaffolds and even a patient's own stem cells, Dr. Hopkins hopes to one day repair a cleft palate without traditional surgery.

Beyond research, Dr. Hopkins sees the department growing in reach and unity. With Driscoll's new hospital in Edinburg now open, he hopes to build a seamless connection between both locations — more staff, more nurse practitioners, and deeper outreach into the Rio Grande Valley communities they serve.

And through it all, the mission stays the same — the one Clara Driscoll wrote into her will decades ago, and the one Dr. Hopkins carries into the operating room every day.

"No child will be turned away."

The Driscoll Children’s Hospital Craniofacial, Cleft and Plastic Surgery Center, led by Dr. Kevin S. Hopkins and Dr. Vanessa D. Dimas, provides optimal care and works to improve the quality of life for patients and families of children with facial differences.