HJNO Jul/Aug 2021

60 JUL / AUG 2021  I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF NEW ORLEANS Hospital Rounds what to expect and how to handle given situa- tions we encountered,” said the patient’s mother, Shanta Hollier. “She has a great combination of medical experience and empathy with patients and was super-efficient, highly skilled, and caring and sensitive. Ann is an outstanding credit to her profession and a shining star at Lakeview Regional Medical Center!” Tulane Lakeside Hospital Maintains ‘A’ Safety Rating This week, Tulane Lakeside Hospital was awarded an “A” rating from The Leapfrog Group, an independent hospital quality watchdog. The designation recognizes Tulane Lakeside’s long- standing efforts in protecting patients from errors, injuries, accidents, and infections. “So much has changed over the last year, but one thing that remains the same is our commit- ment to patient safety,” said Tom Patrias, CEO of Tulane Health System. “This award from Leapfrog is a reflection of our ongoing commitment to pro- viding our community and patients with the safe, quality, and compassionate care they deserve.” Children’s Hospital NO to Open Pediatric ER inMetairie Children’s Hospital New Orleans announced plans to open a pediatric Emergency Room in Metairie this September, enhancing access to pediatric emergency services for thousands of Jef- ferson Parish children and families each year. The dedicated, 11-bed pediatric Emergency Room will provide a complete range of emergency services to care for children from birth through age 21, in addition to scheduled imaging tests. “Children’s Hospital is proud to bring special- ized pediatric emergency care closer to home for families on the East bank of Jefferson Parish,” says John R. Nickens IV, president and chief executive officer of Children’s Hospital New Orleans. “With our robust primary and specialty care network in Metairie, expanding services to include emer- gency care will best serve the nearly 50,000 chil- dren of this community with expert care from our team of pediatric emergency medicine providers.” The new facility, located at the corner of Clear- view Pkwy. and Veterans Blvd., will offer 24/7 full- service emergency care. The comprehensive emergency center connects specialized pediatric emergency services with Children’s Hospital’s network of pediatric specialists. Diagnostic imag- ing services will include CT scans, x-ray, and ultrasound. In addition to the new, Metairie-based Emer- gency Room, Children’s Hospital operates two other emergency departments, including at West Jefferson Medical Center, and at the hospital’s main campus in New Orleans, with 30 beds and more than 40,000 patient visits per year. Construction of the Emergency Room began this spring and is expected to reach completion in September. In addition to this project, Children’s Hospital will open an all-new, expanded Emer- gency Center on its main campus this fall as part of the hospital’s $300 million campus transforma- tion effort. Terrebonne General Health SystemNames Sara Rodrigue, Physician Relations Coordinator Terrebonne General Health System welcomes Sara Rodrigue as the physician relations coordina- tor. Rodrigue has been an integral member of the Terrebonne General staff since 2018 in the Terre- bonne Quality Health Network (TQHN). Her clini- cal experience includes her previous position as a nurse supervisor with Family Doctor Clinic. As physicians relation coordinator, Rodrigue will lead recruitment efforts to bring exceptional phy- sicians to the medical staff. She will handle new physician onboarding, which includes orientation, forms assistance, and EPIC training as well as phy- sician recognition programs. Rodrigue will also manage the new Our Future observation program, which gives medical and allied health students the opportunity to shadow next to seasoned, practicing physicians in order to advance their knowledge of medicine and tech- nology, while also learning about the newest ser- vices on the market today. Louisiana Department of Education, Ochsner Health Launch Virtual Therapy Program for Educators, Support Staff The Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) is partnering with Ochsner Health to launch a vir- tual therapy program to provide access to free mental health virtual visits. More than 166,000 public school educators and support staff state- wide will have access to free mental health virtual visits through Ochsner Anywhere Care – an estab- lished telehealth platform in which patients can connect with a licensed mental/behavioral health provider via a secure video visit from their smart- phone, tablet, or personal computer. Nearly 40% of early childhood educators in Lou- isiana responded to a survey reporting clinically relevant signs of depression (Hechinger Report, Aug 2020). The three-year, million-dollar initiative is funded by the LDOE through allocations from the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief Fund (GEER) to be responsive to the mental and behav- ioral health needs educators may be facing in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. “It is critically important that the state provide mental and emotional support for our teachers and support staffs who unselfishly give so much of themselves to ensure that education continues for our students during this unprecedented pan- demic,” said Gov. John Bel Edwards. “The Gover- nor’s Emergency Education Relief Fund (GEER) is being used to fund the partnership between the Louisiana Department of Education and Ochsner, and I’m grateful that we are able to support our education workforce.” The virtual therapy program for Louisiana edu- cators will cover four virtual therapy visits for Lou- isiana public school teachers and support staff at all K-12 school systems and early child care cen- ters that serve children from birth to age four. This includes all traditional public and public charter schools. Additional visits beyond the initial four covered by the program will be available at a dis- counted rate. Educators who qualify for the program should Sara Rodrigue

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