HJNO Jan/Feb 2024

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF NEW ORLEANS I  JAN / FEB 2024 39 For weekly eNews updates and to read the journal online, visit HealthcareJournalNO.com Acadian Ambulance urges drivers to exercise extreme caution when driving in foggy conditions. If drivers experience heavy fog conditions: • Turn your headlights on. If you can’t see 500 feet in front of you, you should have your low-beam headlights on. • Reduce speed. Speed limits are for ideal conditions; heavy fog is not an ideal condition. • Minimize distractions and increase follow- ing distance from other cars. California Bans 4 Dangerous Food, Drink Additives. Should Louisiana Be Next? Governor of California Gavin Newsom signed first-of-its-kind legislation to prohibit the use of four dangerous chemicals in processed foods and drinks sold in California. Authored by Assembly- member Jesse Gabriel (D-Encino), Assembly Bill (AB) 418 — the California Food Safety Act — would prohibit the manufacture, sale, or dis- tribution in California of any food product con- taining Red Dye No. 3, potassium bromate, bro- minated vegetable oil, or propyl paraben. The use of these chemicals has already been banned in the 27 nations in the European Union as well as many other countries due to scientific research linking them to significant health harms, including cancer, reproductive issues, and behavioral and developmental issues in children. “The Governor’s signature today represents a huge step forward in our effort to protect children and families in California from dangerous and toxic chemicals in our food supply,” said Assem- blymember Gabriel. “It’s unacceptable that the U.S. is so far behind the rest of the world when it comes to food safety. This bill will not ban any foods or products — it simply will require food companies to make minor modifications to their recipes and switch to the safer alternative ingredi- ents that they already use in Europe and so many other places around the globe.” Critical Insight Releases Analysis on Healthcare Data Cyber Breach Critical Insight's 2023 Healthcare Data Cyber Breach Report offered the following key findings: • Total breaches dropped 15% in the first six months of 2023 (1H 2023) compared to the second half of 2022 (1H 2022). • Individual records compromised in data breaches surged by 31% in 1H 2023 com- pared to 2H 2022. • The number of individuals affected increased from 31M in 2H 2022 to 40M in 1H 2023. • Hacking/IT incidents were the primary cause of data breaches, accounting for 73% of breaches in 1H 2023. Unauthorized access/disclosure was the second-most prevalent type in 1H 2023. • Network server breaches are responsi- ble for 97% of individual records affected, while only 2% can be attributed to email breaches. • Of the 40 million exposed records, 48% were linked to business associates, while 43% were associated with healthcare pro- viders. In the first half of 2023, 50% of indi- viduals impacted by a breach had a busi- ness associate present. Terrebonne General Wound Healing and Hyperbaric Clinic Recognized Terrebonne General Health System announced the Terrebonne General Wound Healing and Hyperbaric Clinic is a recipient of RestorixHealth’s Wound Center of Excellence Award. Recipients of this award meet or exceed national wound care quality benchmarks over a set period of time. The Wound Center of Excellence Award distin- guishes centers that have demonstrated excep- tional success by meeting or exceeding clinical and operational benchmarks in several catego- ries, including healing benchmarks and adher- ence to clinical practice pathways, along with a patient satisfaction rate of 96% or higher. “This achievement reaffirms our mission through our partnership with RestorixHealth to improve the health and quality of life for those in our community with wounds,” said Phyllis Peo- ples, president and CEO. “We are proud to be recognized for the outstanding care that our amazing staff provides its patients every day.” The Terrebonne General Wound Healing and Hyperbaric Clinic is dedicated to optimiz- ing outcomes and preventing lower limb loss in patients with non-healing wounds. The approach to wound care is aggressive and comprehensive, coordinating traditional and advanced therapies and techniques that are proven to reduce heal- ing time and improve healing rates. The center is staffed with clinicians with advanced training in wound care and hyperbaric medicine. Integrating a team of wound care pro- fessionals optimizes patient care, while offering the most advanced healing options. The Terrebonne General Wound Healing and Hyperbaric Clinic is located at 8120 Main St., Suite 102, and is open Monday-Friday from 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. LCMCHealth Urgent Care Opens Clinic in Chalmette LCMC Health Urgent Care is seeing patients at its new urgent care clinic in Chalmette. The new LCMC Health Urgent Care is located at 8100 W. Judge Perez Drive in Chalmette, right across from the Walmart Supercenter. LCMC Health Urgent Care treats patients three months of age and older for a variety of minor ill- nesses and injuries. Other services offered at LCMC Health Urgent Care include rapid COVID-19 testing and occu- pational health services for workplace injuries, DOT/Non-DOT physicals, blood analysis, return- to-work exams, and drug testing. Walk-ins are always welcome at LCMC Health Urgent Care on Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-8 p.m., and weekends, 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Patients are encouraged to check in ahead of time by visit- ing LCMCHealthUrgentCare.com and clicking the "Check-In Now" button. With the addition of the new Chalmette clinic, LCMC Health Urgent Care now has locations in Kenner, Algiers, Uptown, Clearview, Covington, Gretna, Lakeview, and Marrero. To learn more, visit LCMChealthUrgentCare.com. LSUA, LSUHealth NO School of Dentistry Unveil Dental Hygiene Program in Central Louisiana Louisiana State University of Alexandria (LSUA) and LSU Health New Orleans announced the launch of the first dental hygiene program in Cen- tral Louisiana. Working together, LSU Health New Orleans School of Dentistry expanded its dental hygiene program to an off-campus instructional