HJNO Jul/Aug 2022

32 JUL / AUG 2022  I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF NEW ORLEANS   Healthcare Briefs LCMCHealth, City of New Orleans Department of Health Launch Partnership LCMC Health announced a partnership with the City of New Orleans Health Department to address health literacy, enhance cultural compe- tency, and continue to improve COVID-19 vac- cination rates with a new program – Be in the KNOW. This citywide initiative will educate locals on the importance of healthcare advocacy and aims to empower communities for better health. April was National Minority Health Month, four weeks dedicated to raising awareness of health disparities that continue to affect underserved communities. Historically, many minority commu- nities have expressed an overall lack of trust in hospitals and health systems. In order to continue building trust, and eventually stronger, healthier communities, LCMC Health and the New Orleans Health Department are encouraging individuals and caregivers to take action through health edu- cation and community collaboration to increase health literacy in the greater New Orleans area and neighboring communities. “LCMC Health is proud to kick-off our partner- ship with the City of New Orleans Health Depart- ment during National Minority Health Month to address the needs of our community,” said Toni Flowers, MD, LCMC Health chief diversity and social responsibility officer. “Health equity and health literacy are serious concerns that require caring and smart collaboration. Through this part- nership, we will provide our community with the proper tools and resources needed to advocate for better health.” This exclusive partnership will support the “Advancing Health Literacy in Racial & Ethic Com- munities in Response to COVID-19 in Orleans Par- ish” grant awarded to the City of New Orleans by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health. The grant and partnership centers on community outreach and engagement to empower the community’s health through the use of grassroots health education, motivational interviewing, and health literacy by providing videos, handouts, and additional sup- port and access needed for community members to take ownership of their health. The grant and partnership will provide educational tools includ- ing videos, handouts, and additional support and access needed for community members to take ownership of their health. This partnership aims to enhance patient and provider communication, increase health literacy in the City of New Orleans, adhere to the COVID- 19 health practices of underserved communities, and address class standards training. Transportation Grant Will Aid St. Tammany Cancer Center Patients Bolstering St. Tammany Health System’s ongo- ing efforts to remove barriers to quality care on the Northshore, the American Cancer Society has awarded St. Tammany Hospital Foundation a $10,000 grant to address transportation needs of local cancer patients. It is the second consecutive year the founda- tion has received the cancer society grant, which will provide gas cards, rideshare rides, and other transportation assistance to patients in need who are receiving treatment at St. Tammany Cancer Center, a campus of Ochsner Medical Center. “We serve patients from throughout southeast Louisiana and Mississippi, and transportation issues for patients has become one of our most emergent needs,” St. Tammany Hospital Foun- dation Major Gift Specialist Jennifer Garrard said. “Last year, we were able to meet the transporta- tion needs of 143 patients, whether through ride- share services or gas cards. With help from this latest American Cancer Society grant, and with the numbers of patients being seen at the cancer center increasing, we have every reason to expect that number to go up.” The cancer center opened in June 2021 in Cov- ington, coalescing cancer services throughout the partnership into a single location. For many, however, traveling to and from their treatments – sometimes multiple times a week – still poses an economic burden. Others are too sick to drive themselves. In a study by PubMed.gov, many patients sim- ply forgo needed treatment due to transporta- tion issues. To combat that trend, the cancer center – with help from grants and private donations to St. Tammany Hospital Foundation – distrib- uted more than 500 gas cards to patients living greater than 50 miles away round trip in 2018 and 2019. In 2020, the process was refined to meet the increased need of patients traveling from 25 to 49 miles away. Patients traveling 25 miles or more twice a week to the cancer center for treat- ment, lab or physician treatments that do not occur on the same day will qualify for transpor- tation assistance. Lexie Matherne, American Cancer Society senior program manager said, “Disparities pre- dominantly arise from inequities in work, wealth, income, education, housing and overall standard of living, as well as social barriers to high-quality cancer prevention, early detection, and treatment services. ACS collaborates with community health partners to reach individuals in areas with higher burdens of cancer with little to no access to trans- portation – because even the best treatment can’t work if a patient can’t get there.” SELA Veterans Health Care SystemNamed LGBTQ + Health Care Top Performer The Southeast Louisiana Veterans Health Care System earned the designation of LGBTQ+ Health Care Equality Top Performer in the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 15th anniversary edition of the Health Care Equality Index with a score of 95 out of 100. This index is the nation’s leading survey of healthcare facilities on policies and practices dedicated to the equal treatment and inclusion of LGBTQ+ patients, visitors, and employees. “Every Veteran we serve has earned world-class healthcare that is delivered in a respectful and affirming manner,” said Medical Center Director Fernando Rivera. “We provide an environment that feels safe and welcoming to all.” Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center Covington Earns National Accreditation fromCoC The Commission on Cancer (CoC), a quality program of the American College of Surgeons (ACS), has granted three-year accreditation to Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center Covington. To earn voluntary CoC accreditation, a cancer pro- gram must meet 34 CoC quality care standards, be evaluated every three years through a survey process, and maintain levels of excellence in the delivery of comprehensive patient-centered care. As a CoC-accredited cancer center, the Cancer