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.”
Methodist Cypress already has 100 patient beds and can expand to 500. The two medical office buildings on-site are 90% occupied. In just its second week of operation, the hospital’s surgical block time is 75% filled. Growth is not a question of if but how fast.
A path paved with purpose
LeBlanc’s path to leadership wasn’t straight. By the time she finished her residency at Baylor College of Medicine, she was a mother of three. After a divorce, she was forced to temporarily step off the partnership track. This decision was driven by family, but it tested her resolve.
“I felt like I had no room for error,” she said. “Every decision for my kids, for my career—it all started and stopped with me. There were so many sleepless nights, but I just kept praying, kept pushing.”
Support from her family—especially her father and grandmother—helped her re-enter the partnership track. Her colleagues at GHA (which later became part of USAP) backed her every step of the way, filling in at parent-teacher conferences and games. And when one partner told her, “It’s time,” she listened.
“I always wanted to help shape what our environment looked like,” LeBlanc said. “I didn’t work this hard just to be told what to do—I wanted to lead.”
Today, as a member of the Clinical Governance Board at U.S. Anesthesia Partners and a pivotal figure at Houston Methodist Cypress, she’s doing just that.
From one to many
Now that she’s climbed the ranks, LeBlanc is determined not to be the only one at the top.
“My mission has always been to make sure I’m not the only one—but one of many,” she said. “I had great mentors, but none of them looked like me. That’s why I focus on both mentorship and sponsorship.”
LeBlanc regularly mentors medical students and residents, sharing not just clinical wisdom but life experience—about being a young mom in medical school, rebuilding after heartbreak, and choosing ambition even when the odds were against her.
“There’s nothing you can’t do if you’re willing to work hard for it,” she said. “It’s not just about being a doctor. Whatever your dream is—there’s no one who can stop you but you.”
A legacy in the making
As the hospital grows—and it will—LeBlanc is clear on what success looks like: safe patients, supported staff and a culture that values innovation and inclusion.
“To be part of something from the ground up, to bring what I’ve learned from Baytown and downtown, and to help build this—it’s a blessing,” she said. “We’re not just launching a hospital. We’re launching a new way of caring.”
And in that launch, Dr. Kelly LeBlanc is proof that trailblazers don’t just break ceilings. They build doors for others to walk through.
This story is part of the Digital Equity Local Voices Fellowship Lab. The Lab initiative is made possible with support from Comcast NBCUniversal.
