HJNO Jul/Aug 2020

32 JUL / AUG 2020  I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF NEW ORLEANS   Healthcare Briefs resources to overcome adversity. With the out- break of COVID-19, we saw the need for imme- diate action and have stepped forward to address both the short- and long-term impacts of this disease. Towards this end, we launched the LWCC Foundation with a three phase gift and grant package, Louisiana Well Again: COVID- 19 Response Package,” said John Hawie, LWCC Foundation board chair. The three phases of the Louisiana Well Again: COVID-19 Response Package include: • Phase 1 is a $100,000 gift to Feeding Louisi- ana, a statewide nonprofit organization that supports food banks across the state. • Phase 2 is a $500,000 grants program that will help hospitals across the state support the work of COVID-19 frontline healthcare workers. • Phase 3 is a $500,000 grants program to fund initiatives focused on improving the health, wellness, and safety of Louisiana workers in the wake of the COVID-19 peak. These initiatives will implement long-term solutions targeting long-existing vulnerabil- ities in Louisiana workers. This grants pro- gram will begin later in 2020 once there is greater clarity on the impacts of COVID-19 on Louisiana’s workforce. A link to the grant application for hospitals and hospital foundations can be found at louisian- aloyal.com. CIS Urges Patients to Keep Appointments, Assures Safety Cardiovascular Institute of the South (CIS) urges patients to keep appointments and remains focused on providing quality cardiovascular care in a safe environment. At this time, CIS assures patients that it is not only safe, but that it is impor- tant to stay alert to symptoms of cardiovascular disease and not delay care. CIS is keeping the following precautions in place for the continued safety of patients: • CIS screens all patients and visitors for COVID-19 symptoms prior to their appoint- ment and again upon arrival. • Visitors are limited to one per patient. • Patients can check into their appointment from a mobile device in their car and will be notified when their provider is ready, avoiding the need to sit in the lobby. • CIS continues to practice social distancing in the clinic. • CIS requires all guests to wear a face mask when visiting a clinic, and will furnish them as needed. • CIS staff members conduct rigorous clean- ing after each patient in exam rooms, diag- nostic testing areas, bathrooms, and labs— following all CDC guidelines. • CIS staff members continue to wear Per- sonal Protective Equipment and always wash their hands before and after every patient interaction. All employees are screened before work each day. • Door handles, countertops, telephones, and other clinic equipment are cleaned fre- quently throughout the day. The CIS care team remains available 24 hours a day, seven days a week through the CIS Virtual Care Center to respond to patient questions and concerns. CIS also continues to offer virtual video visits for patients who are unable to come in to the clinic. However, in most cases, an in-person appointment is still necessary to properly evalu- ate and treat a condition. For more information, or to schedule an appointment, visit www.cardio.com . LSUHealth NO Infectious Diseases Specialists Cautiously Optimistic about Investigational Drug LSU Health New Orleans physicians who have been treating COVID-19 patients on the front lines for months secured approval of a proto- col for expanded access use of the investiga- tional antiviral drug remdesivir in their hospital- ized patients with severe manifestations of the disease. Dr. Julio Figueroa, professor of medicine and chief of infectious diseases at LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine, expressed cautious optimism at the results just announced by Gil- ead Sciences, Inc. of a clinical trial investigating the drug. Figueroa said, “While the results are prelimi- nary, we are encouraged that remdesivir may be helpful for some of our severely ill patients. We are currently using it under the FDA’s Expanded Access Program, which permits the use of inves- tigational drugs outside of a clinical trial.” After the existence of novel coronavirus 19 now called SARS-CoV-2 became known, LSU Health New Orleans clinicians and scientists began gath- ering and evaluating the information emerging about the virus and the disease it causes. That included patient outcomes as clinicians in places hard hit by the virus tried a number of drugs for a disease that has no treatment. After careful evaluation of the best information available, LSU Health New Orleans physicians designed proto- cols for clinical trials to contribute to the body of knowledge while also taking the steps leading to approval to use the medications that seemed to show the greatest promise outside of a clini- cal trial. Protocols need Institutional Review Board approval and must meet other requirements of the FDA Expanded Access Program. “We continue to work closely with our partner teaching hospitals in this process to find the most effective treatments for our patients,” Figueroa concluded. Louisiana Healthcare Connections Provides PPE, Care Packages to Frontline HealthcareWorkers In response to the high demand for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and other supplies on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic, Loui- siana Healthcare Connections partnered with the Louisiana Nurses Foundation and the Lou- isiana Primary Care Association (LPCA) to pro- vide healthcare workers with the items they need. Louisiana Healthcare Connections, a Healthy Louisiana Medicaid health plan, provided 150,000 masks; 1,500 face shields; 3,000 hand sanitizers; and 20 care packages to hospitals, health sys- tems, and clinics across the state. The Louisiana Nurses Foundation received 50,000 masks and 1,500 face shields for nurses working around-the-clock on the frontlines of the epidemic at hospitals across the state. In addi- tion, Louisiana Healthcare Connections partnered with the Foundation’s Nurses Relief Fund to pro- vide 3,000 hand sanitizers and 20 care packages for registered nurses serving on the frontlines of COVID-19 units.