HJNO Nov/Dec 2019

58 NOV / DEC 2019  I  Healthcare Journal of NEW ORLEANS   Hospital Rounds abstinence over other forms of reduction and has been used both in the design of clinical trials and clinically in patients in the MD Anderson Tobacco Treatment Program. Through the Tobacco Treat- ment Program, Cinciripini’s work reaches more than 6,000 cancer patients annually, providing both low-touch and more intensive treatment approaches to smoking cessation. Silverman’s work focuses on understanding chronic obstructive pulmonary disease genetics and epidemiology. This work explains the inter- action of cigarette smoking and genetic predis- position to increased chronic obstructive pulmo- nary disease (COPD) risk. Silverman has identified more than 80 genomic regions that are associated with COPD risk and confirmed functional genetic variants near the Hedgehog Interacting Protein (HHIP) and FAM13A genes that influence the risk of COPD. His work demonstrates that COPD is the result of a complex interplay of genetics and environment and not simply a smoking-related disease. The Ochsner Award is named in honor of Alton Ochsner, MD, co-founder of the Ochsner Clinic (now known as the Ochsner Health System) based in New Orleans. In 1939, Ochsner published the first evidence indicating that tobacco smoking was the major cause of lung cancer. Slidell Memorial Hospital Names David Grizzard Chief Operating Officer Slidell Memorial Hospital has selected David Grizzard as its chief operating officer. In this posi- tion, Grizzard will oversee the day-to-day busi- ness operations of the hospital and its clinics, and he will report to Chief Executive Officer Kerry R. Tirman. Grizzard most recently served as the chief finan- cial officer since 2013 at Baptist Medical Center East, a 150-bed, not-for-profit, acute care hospi- tal in Montgomery. “I am excited to join the team at Slidell Memo- rial, and eager to help further the progress that SMH and Ochsner have made together in Slidell,” said Grizzard. “David has vast experience in hospital leader- ship and in delivering results. His background at other not-for-profit healthcare facilities also makes him uniquely qualified for this position,” said Kerry R. Tirman, CEO of SMH and Ochsner Medical Center – North Shore. “We are confident in his abilities to help lead SMH in innovation, quality and compassionate care for our community.”  In addition to being a certified public accoun- tant, Grizzard also earned a Master of Account- ing degree from the University of Alabama at Bir- mingham and a bachelor’s degree in commerce and business administration from the University of Alabama Culverhouse College of Commerce in Tuscaloosa, Ala.  After beginning his career as an accountant in private firms, Grizzard moved into the healthcare finance arena as controller, assistant CFO, and CFO at various hospitals in Mississippi and Ala- bama, ranging from 101-bed to 534-bed facilities. Interventional Radiologist Sean Gipson, MD, Joins North Oaks Imaging Associates Interventional Radiologist Sean Gipson, MD, has joined North Oaks Imaging Associates. Gipson comes to North Oaks after completing a residency in diagnostic radiology and a fellow- ship in vascular interventional radiology through Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, which is a Level I Trauma Center. He earned a medical degree at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans, where he volunteered at a student-run clinic pro- viding care to the homeless, as well as Camp Tiger working with children with special needs, and Children’s Hospital organizing activities for cancer patients and their families. Interventional radiologists use minimally invasive image-guided procedures to diagnose and treat diseases in nearly every organ system. In addi- tion to aiding in diagnosis, these specialists can identify and correct vascular diseases. They also can deliver cancer treatments directly to tumors. North Oaks Imaging Associates is a radiology group based at North Oaks Medical Center, which is a Level II Trauma Center and Primary Stroke Center located at 15790 Paul Vega Drive. STPH’s KerryMilton Heads Regional Professional Group With innovation as a central focus of her leader- ship, Kerry Milton, senior vice president and chief nursing officer at St. Tammany Parish Hospital, assumed chairmanship of Vizient Southern States Nursing Executive Network. Under Milton’s chair- manship, the Nursing Executive Network earned recognition as Vizient Network of the Year for 2018 with the innovative idea of using a virtual book club to build cohesion and participation. “The network is designed so that the top exec- utives in nursing among our 36-member hospitals across the southeastern United States can network and learn from one another,” Milton explained, “so it is an honor and privilege to accept the chair- manship and turn our network’s attention to inno- vative ideas in nursing, particularly with regard to nurse recruitment, retention, and resilience.” Through a combination of in-person and vir- tual meetings, the Vizient Southern States Nurs- ing Executive Network focused on the overall issues of nurse recruitment and retention. Ideas included engaging new graduates, elevating qual- ity, launching and supporting nurse residency pro- grams, and better involving Advance Practice Registered Nurses (APRN) in the care continuum. Sean Gipson, MD Kerry Milton, RN, BSN, MSHA