HJNO Nov/Dec 2019

Healthcare Journal of NEW ORLEANS I  NOV / DEC 2019 57 For weekly eNews updates and to read the journal online, visit HealthcareJournalNO.com the addition of Dr. Brandi B. Duet, obstetrics and gynecology, to the active medical staff. She has joined Thibodaux Regional Women’s Clinic, 604 N. Acadia Rd. Suite 500 in Thibodaux. A native of Thibodaux, Duet received a medi- cal degree from Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans. She completed a residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Och- sner Clinic Foundation Hospital in New Orleans. Duet is a member of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology and the American Medical Association. Children’s Hospital Receives Excellence Award fromNRCHealth Children’s Hospital New Orleans was honored by NRC Health as a recipient of the 2019 Excel- lence Award at the 25th Annual NRC Health Sym- posium in Nashville, Tenn. The Excellence Awards recognize organizations which have received the highest ratings in overall satisfaction by patients and their families. Winners were selected from the extensive data- base of NRC Health hospital clients for their per- formance over the last four quarters. Children’s Hospital was selected for its first-place ranking in the most improved facility category of children’s hospitals. “There is nothing more important than ensuring we provide the highest quality care along with an outstanding experience for our patients and their families,” says John R. Nickens IV, president and CEO, Children’s Hospital New Orleans. “The NRC Excellence Award reflects our team’s hard work and dedication to providing extraordinary care for our patients.” TulaneMedical Center, NFL Legends Rickey Jackson, Willie Roaf Host Free Prostate Cancer Screening Event Rickey Jackson and Willie Roaf have many things in common. They both played most of their NFL careers for the New Orleans Saints. They were both named to the Professional Football Hall of Fame. And they’ve both had their lives impacted by prostate cancer. That is why both former players – along with sev- eral other Saints legends – partnered with Tulane Health System to raise awareness of prostate can- cer and provide free PSA screenings to any eligi- ble men. The fourth annual Man Up! – Geaux Get Screened prostate screening event took place this fall in Tulane Medical Center’s main lobby.  In addition to the free screening – a quick blood draw that can help determine one’s risk of prostate cancer – participants had the opportunity to meet and have pictures taken with former NFL players (including Saints greats like Jackson, Roaf, quar- terback Bobby Hebert, and others) and hear Jack- son’s personal testimony about his prostate can- cer diagnosis and recovery. “We want to kick off the NFL season by doing something that can have a real, positive impact on our community,” said Jackson. “The guys I played with know what I faced with my cancer diagno- sis, and they were more than willing to help raise awareness and get men to a screening.” Roaf said the seriousness of prostate cancer hit home for him when his father was diagnosed with the disease. “We were lucky – he had the surgery and lived another 10 years,” Roaf said. “But he didn’t really have symptoms. It’s silent. Men need to get checked, and they need to know their numbers.” The event featured games and prizes for kids, as well as other health information provided by Tulane experts.  “We are excited we can offer men this quick and relatively painless blood test called a PSA to screen for prostate cancer,” said Dr. Raju Thomas, urologist with Tulane Health System. “PSA screen- ing is used to pinpoint patients that may be har- boring cancer or other conditions such as an enlarged prostate. Last year, the American Cancer Society lowered its recommended age from 50 to 45 for men with no family history of prostate cancer to begin PSA screening. Men who have a first-degree relative (father, brother, or son) diagnosed with prostate cancer should begin screening at age 40. “Everybody knows my number,” said Jackson, referencing his famous No. 57 with the Saints. “But do they know their PSA numbers? That’s way more important.” “My uncle died from prostate cancer so I know it can take you out. I thought I was perfectly healthy when I found out I had prostate cancer. I didn’t play around. I got aggressive – you’ve got to.” Other than skin cancer, prostate cancer is the most common cancer in American men. Accord- ing to the American Cancer Society, about one in seven men will be diagnosed with prostate can- cer during their lifetime. However, when found early and treated, prostate cancer has a 98 per- cent 10-year survival rate. Ochsner Names 2019 Alton Ochsner Award Relating Smoking and Disease Honorees For 34 years, Ochsner Health System has annu- ally recognized scientists who have made major contributions regarding the relationship between smoking and disease along with the development of innovative treatment modalities. The 2019 Alton Ochsner Award Relating Smoking and Disease Award has been bestowed to Paul M. Cinciripini, PhD, and Edwin K. Silverman, MD, PhD. Cinciripini is a professor in the Department of Behavioral Science and director of the Tobacco Treatment Program at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Tex. Silverman is a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and a physician in the Depart- ment of Medicine, Pulmonary, and Critical Care at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Mass.  Each honoree will receive a $7,500 honorarium, an award medallion, and a plaque describing key research findings. Cinciripini devises methods for smoking cessa- tion, employing insights from behavioral science, genetics, neuroscience, and clinical studies. He developed a treatment and smoking cessation technique called “scheduled smoking” – a treat- ment that promotes gradual cessation by progres- sively increasing the interval between cigarettes over several weeks. This method has improved Brandi B. Duet, MD