An excerpt from the Defender -
Black woman leads at Houston’s most advanced hospital
by ReShonda Tate
When Dr. Kelly LeBlanc walks the halls of the newly opened Houston Methodist Cypress Hospital, she sees more than a groundbreaking medical facility—she sees the future of health care.
And as one of the few Black senior leaders in the building, she knows she’s a key part of shaping it.
The Cypress campus, which opened its doors on March 17, merges cutting-edge technology and compassionate care in a way that’s never been done before in Houston. The hospital is among the first in the country to be fully integrated with AI, ambient listening, and 5G-ready infrastructure. But for LeBlanc, the chief of Anesthesia at the new facility and a senior leader at U.S. Anesthesia Partners—this moment is about more than machines and smart tech. It’s about representation, resilience and creating space for others to rise.
“My very first day at Methodist, a woman came up to me and said, ‘I don’t know why you’re here. Black women don’t last—and they surely don’t make partner,’” LeBlanc recalls. “I looked at her and thought, ‘Watch me.’”
And she did more than just last—she led.
Building from the ground up
Methodist Cypress is the newest hospital in the Houston Methodist system and possibly the most ambitious. Its patient rooms are voice-controlled with Alexa-like functionality. Cameras can detect when a patient is at risk of falling. With a single button, a specialist—like a neurologist—can appear instantly on-screen during a stroke. Every hallway, every room, every medical office is designed with technology in mind.
“There are no phones in the rooms,” said Dr. Nicholas Desai, Chief Medical Officer. “We’ve doubled down on voice to drive everything.”
From fall detection to AI-assisted medical documentation, the facility is built for efficiency. For clinicians, that means less time behind a computer and more time with patients. For LeBlanc, it’s an opportunity to shape what high-quality care looks like for today and the future.
“This is the most technologically advanced hospital in the country,” LeBlanc said. “But the technology doesn’t replace the human touch—it supports it. That’s what makes it so special.”
https://defendernetwork.com/black-women/houston-methodist-cypress-hospital-leblanc/#:~:text=When%20Dr.,key%20part%20of%20shaping%20it.
