Congenital Heart – Texas Adult Congenital Heart (TACH) Center

Baylor Heart ClinicMonday - Friday    8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
To schedule an appointment, call 713.798.2545 or 1.800.526.3384.
For more information, visit the Baylor Heart Clinic website: www.bcm.edu/baylorheart


The Texas Adult Congenital Heart (TACH) Center provides adult congenital heart disease (CHD) patients a safe, smooth, uninterrupted transition of healthcare from pediatric specialists in the early stages of their lives, to a medical team capable of addressing their adult healthcare needs and lifestyles, enabling these patients to live longer, healthier lives.

The TACH Center’s integrated network of specialized care providers, associated hospitals and shared technologies enable patients with congenital heart disease to receive outstanding care from birth to old age. At the age of 18 or older, patients have seamless continuation of care from pediatrics to an adult setting. Our multidisciplinary team of experienced CHD specialists can continue to advise patients on health and lifestyle choices for their adult needs, whether that be physical challenges, exercise options or family planning appropriate for their physiology.

The Texas Adult Congenital Heart Center began as a collaborative effort across the Baylor College of Medicine departments of cardiology and pediatrics, Texas Children’s Hospital and the Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital. Today, we proudly offer the highest level of comprehensive and compassionate medical and surgical care, backed by the combined technologies and research of our world-class medical institutions.


Our Services

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The TACH Center offers a full spectrum of services delivered by experts in this growing subspecialty. Services include:

Our Physicians

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Wayne J. Franklin, M.D., is medical director of the TACH Center. He also serves as assistant professor of Medicine and Pediatrics for the sections of Adult and Pediatric Cardiology at Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children’s Hospital and the Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital. Dr. Franklin is board certified in internal medicine. He earned his medical degree from the University of California, Los Angeles, followed by residency training in internal medicine and pediatrics at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina. He completed a fellowship at the adult cardiovascular medicine and pediatric cardiology centers at Baylor College of Medicine, St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital and Texas Children’s Hospital.

Philip M. Barger, M.D., is assistant professor of Medicine, Winters Center for Heart Failure Research and the section of Cardiology at Baylor College of Medicine. He is on the attending staff of the TACH Center at Baylor College of Medicine, the Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital, and Ben Taub General Hospital. Dr. Barger is board certified in cardiovascular diseases. He earned his medical degree from Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, followed by a residency in internal medicine at University Hospitals of Cleveland, Case Western Reserve University. He completed a postdoctoral research fellowship in both internal medicine and molecular biology and pharmacology at Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, and a clinical cardiology fellowship at Barnes Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine. He also completed a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Summer Research Fellowship.

Denton A. Cooley, M.D., is senior consultant with the TACH Center and president, surgeon-in-chief and founder of the Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital. He also serves as chief of Cardiovascular Surgery at St. Luke’s, as a consultant in Cardiovascular Surgery at Texas Children’s Hospital and as a clinical professor of Surgery at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston. A pioneer in the field of cardiovascular surgery, Dr. Cooley performed the first successful human heart transplant in the United States and was the first heart surgeon to implant an artificial heart in man. He is board certified in general surgery and thoracic surgery. Dr. Cooley earned his medical degree from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland. His numerous honors and awards include the Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award.

Charles D. Fraser Jr., M.D., is part of the cardiovascular faculty of the TACH Center. He is director of Congenital Heart Surgery at the Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital and Donovan Chair and chief of the department of Congenital Heart Surgery at Texas Children’s Hospital. He is also chief of the division of Congenital Heart Surgery and professor of Surgery and Pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine. Dr. Fraser is board certified in surgery and thoracic surgery. He earned his medical degree with honors from University of Texas Medical School at Galveston, followed by post-graduate training at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, The Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital, and Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne, Australia.

Richard A. Friedman, M.D., M.B.A., is executive director of the TACH Center and professor of Pediatrics (cardiology) at Baylor College of Medicine. He also serves as director of both the Outpatient Services Clinic and Electrophysiology and Pacing at Texas Children’s Hospital, and as adjunct professor of Physics at the University of Houston. Dr. Friedman is board certified in pediatrics with subspecialty certification in pediatric cardiology. He earned his medical degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and his MBA from University of Chicago Graduate School of Business. He completed a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Electrophysiology Research Fellowship, followed by a fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine.  

J. Lynn Jefferies, M.D., M.P.H., is part of the cardiovascular faculty of the TACH Center. He serves as assistant professor of Pediatric Cardiology at Texas Children’s Hospital, as assistant professor of Adult Cardiovascular Diseases at the Texas Heart Institute, and as assistant professor of Pediatrics and Internal Medicine (cardiology) at Baylor College of Medicine. Dr. Jefferies earned his medical degree from the University of Tennessee College of Medicine and his Master’s of Public Health from the University of Kentucky, where he also completed his residency in internal medicine/pediatrics and an internal medicine fellowship. He completed a combined adult and pediatric cardiology fellowship and a fellowship in pediatric cardiac transplantation at Baylor College of Medicine. Dr. Jefferies is board certified in internal medicine and pediatrics.

E. Dean McKenzie, M.D., is part of the cardiovascular faculty of the TACH Center. Dr. McKenzie is associate surgeon of Congenital Heart Surgery and surgical director of the Heart and Lung Transplant Program at Texas Children’s Hospital. He is also assistant professor of Surgery at Baylor College of Medicine. Dr. McKenzie is board certified in surgery and thoracic surgery. He earned his medical degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. He completed his residency in general surgery and thoracic surgery at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina, and a general surgery residency at Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.

Hours of Operation

Monday - Friday    8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Appointments

To schedule an appointment, call 713.798.2545 or 1.800.526.3384.

For More Information

Visit the Baylor Heart Clinic website: www.bcm.edu/baylorheart

Location

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Texas Adult Congenital Heart Center
Baylor Clinic
6620 Main Street
12th Floor, Suite 1225
Houston, Texas 77030

The courtesy and professionalism was extraordinary and the kindness was overwhelming.