In the fall of 2003, Children's Medical Center Dallas became the site of extraordinary surgery to separate two craniopagus conjoined twins, Egyptian-born Ahmed and Mohamed Ibrahim. The premier pediatric healthcare facility in north Texas, Children's was selected for the high-risk procedure because of its highly regarded and experienced neurosurgical team, skilled support staff and state-of-the-art technology and surgical equipment.

Months before the anticipated surgery date, Richards Partners was tapped to handle communications planning for the surgery, which was anticipated to attract worldwide media attention for the duration of the 30- to 40-hour procedure. As the surgery was extremely high risk, a primary objective was to manage expectations for the various surgical outcomes.

Detailed plans were developed to cover each potential scenario along with 24/7 logistics that encompassed every aspect of disseminating timely information to the media. An extensive press kit was created to provide background information and an FAQ addressed the tough questions. A bilingual physician spokesperson was trained for the case and a briefing schedule was established and strictly followed. Condition reports were posted every three hours on the childrens.com website over the course of the 34-hour surgery.

When word came from the surgical suite to the media center, "We have two boys," even seasoned reporters found it hard to stay composed. From "Good Morning America" to BBC Ireland, from Al Jazeera to "CNN Live with Paula Zahn" — almost 10,000 broadcast and print stories were posted on the successful separation. In one month, the childrens.com website registered 11.3 million unique visitors as people from around the world posted good wishes and prayers for the twins' continued recovery. Our work was honored by the Texas Public Relations Association with a Silver Spur award.