HJNO Sep/Oct 2019

Healthcare Journal of NEW ORLEANS I  SEP / OCT 2019 57 For weekly eNews updates and to read the journal online, visit HealthcareJournalNO.com facilities to improve patient safety and health- care quality, consistent with LAMMICO's ongo- ing efforts to mitigate liability and ensure patient safety through education, assessment, and tai- lored clinical risk management resources. This annual award program was established in 2015 to applaud the most outstanding contribu- tions of excellence in patient safety throughout Louisiana, Arkansas, and Mississippi. Jennings American Legion Hospital was awarded a $10,000 grant to be used for nursing professional devel- opment; a one-year risk manager membership to the American Society for Healthcare Risk Man- agement (ASHRM); and a one-year complimen- tary membership to Medical Interactive Commu- nity for all employees to access risk management CME/CNE/MOC courses online. Drew Memorial Hospital in Monticello, Ark., and The Spine Hospital of Louisiana at The Neuro- Medical Center in Baton Rouge, La., were named Patient Safety Award and grant honorees. A grant of $2,000, to be used for nursing professional development, was presented to both hospitals. Ochsner Hospital for Children Joins National Consortiumon Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome Mayo Clinic's Todd and Karen Wanek Fam- ily Program for Hypoplastic Left Heart Syn- drome and Ochsner Hospital for Children are collaborating within a consortium to provide solu- tions for patients with hypoplastic left heart syn- drome (HLHS), a rare and complex form of con- genital heart disease in which the left side of the heart is severely underdeveloped. The consortium aligns regional centers and an advocacy group into a collaboration led by the Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome Program at Mayo Clinic to accelerate innovation and dis- covery sciences, as well as bring clinical trials and expertise to patients across the country. Ochsner's Pediatric and Adult Congenital Car- diac Surgery Program is led by Benjamin Peeler, MD, who joined Ochsner's team in 2016. Peeler is a board-certified congenital cardiac surgeon who previously served as the chief of pediatric and adult congenital cardiac surgery at Levine Children's Hospital in Charlotte, North Carolina.  "Dr. Peeler has been building a team of dedi- cated professionals, and their work has resulted in a 100 percent survival rate of the complex Nor- wood surgery every year since 2017," said Tim Nelson, MD, PhD, director of the HLHS Pro- gram at Mayo Clinic. "They are passionate about ensuring that all families in Louisiana have access to the best level of surgical care which is why we're so proud to welcome them to the HLHS Consortium." "Our team has worked tirelessly to ensure that families in the Gulf South have access to excep- tional and nationally recognized healthcare close to home," said Peeler. "We're honored to collab- orate with the HLHS Program at Mayo Clinic to bring even more resources and research to our patients. As the only member of the consortium in the South, our program's continued growth will benefit thousands of patients in our region and beyond." There are now eight members in the Hypo- plastic Left Heart Syndrome Consortium. Seven are hospitals and one is an advocacy group for patients and families. Ochsner Hospital for Chil- dren joins Mayo Clinic, Children's Hospital of Phil- adelphia, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Chil- dren's Minnesota, Children's Hospital Colorado, and The Children's Hospital at OU Medicine in expanding the development of cell-based inno- vative research opportunities for people living with HLHS. Sisters by Heart is a founding member of the Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome Consortium. This advocacy group was started by mothers who came together to support families on their journeys with children who have HLHS. A focus of their mission is to send care packages to parents of a child newly diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, connecting them to a network of resources from birth through recovery. "Advocacy groups like Sisters by Heart are vital to strengthening our consortium," said Nelson. "They ensure that our patients and families have a seat at the table, and can bring awareness and provide support on a person-to-person level that institutions cannot." All consortium sites will participate in a phase II clinical trial using stem cells from a baby's own umbilical cord blood in regenerative therapy. Therapy Pups Bring ‘Little Something Extra’ to Touro LCMC Health Touro LCMC Health recently added two new employees to their roster--unlike any of the employees in the hospital’s 167 years. Touro and Indie are the newest teammembers in the Touro Rehabilitation Center, and they are of the four-legged variety. You could say they are Touro’s “little something extras!”