HJNO Mar/Apr 2025

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF NEW ORLEANS I  MAR / APR 2025 61 For weekly eNews updates and to read the journal online, visit HealthcareJournalNO.com new chief nursing officer. Batiste-Brown began her nursing career with Ochsner Health, working there for over a decade and eventually serving as director of ambulatory nursing. In 2013, she moved to California to join UCLA Health, most recently serving as their chief nursing officer and adjunct associate professor at the UCLA School of Nursing, Batiste-Brown earned a Master of Science in Nursing from Loyola University and Doctor of Nursing Practice from Capella University. She is board-certified as an advanced nurse executive and a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing. Batiste-Brown will oversee nursing and patient care services, which includes 800 nurses employed by Touro. Ochsner Health Serves as Official Medical Provider of NO Super Bowl Host Committee Ochsner Health served as the Official Medical Provider of the New Orleans Super Bowl Host Committee, led by the New Orleans Saints and the Greater New Orleans Sports Foundation, for Super Bowl LIX. Over the past year, Ochsner has worked closely with the host committee and its partners to engage the local community and to ensure fans from across the country and world will have access to the highest quality medical care while in New Orleans. As part of its commu- nity outreach, Ochsner and partner organizations, including the New Orleans Saints, have hosted interactive learning opportunities for students across Greater New Orleans. In its role as Official Medical Provider of the New Orleans Super Bowl Host Committee, Ochsner led at Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. He is board-certified in emer- gency medicine with subspecialty board certifica- tion in emergency medicine services by the Amer- ican Board of Emergency Medicine. “Dr. Elder is an exceptional physician leader, and he truly lives the Spirit of Charity,” said UMC CEO John Nickens. “While in his intern year of res- idency at LSU, Dr. Elder cared for our community, working on the frontlines in the wake of Hurricane Katrina’s devastation, and today, he continues that compassionate care as an emergency physician in our hospital. As we approach the 10-year anniver- sary of UMC and the 20-year anniversary of Hurri- cane Katrina, I could not think of a better person to oversee our medical staff. I am excited to see how his expertise, experience and dedication will continue to help us grow and thrive as a regional leader in healthcare.” STHS Cuts Ribbon on Same- Day Surgery Center On Dec. 17, the grand opening of the new St. Tammany Health System Surgery Center was held. The $75 million, same-day surgical facility is located adjacent to the health system’s Paul D. Cordes Outpatient Pavilion on Louisiana 1085 (Bootlegger Road) in Covington. The 126,000-square-foot facility was designed with local surgeons’ input to meet the current and future demand for same-day surgeries, which is in turn fueled by technological advances that have expanded the number of procedures available in the 23-hour arena. “Just more than two weeks ago, on Dec. 1, we celebrated our health system’s storied 70-year past. Today, with the opening of this peerless facil- ity, we celebrate the future,” health system Presi- dent and CEO Joan Coffman said at a brief rib- bon-cutting ceremony. In addition to creating more than 100 local jobs, the surgery center’s completion will also open capacity at the health system’s flagship St. Tam- many Parish Hospital for more complex surgical cases. Touro Names Quanna Batiste- Brown as Chief Nursing Officer Touro announced the appointment of Quanna Batiste-Brown, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, as its Ochsner Health hospitals as 2025 High Perform- ing hospitals for maternity care. This is the high- est award a hospital can earn as part of U.S. News’ Best Hospitals for Maternity Care annual study. The following Ochsner facilities across Louisi- ana earned a High Performing designation in rec- ognition of maternity care as measured by fac- tors such as birthing-friendly practices, favorable rates for unexpected newborn complications, and transparency on racial/ethnic disparities, among other measures: • Ochsner Medical Center - West Bank Cam- pus and Ochsner Baptist as listed under Ochsner Medical Center – New Orleans. • Ochsner Medical Center - Kenner in Kenner. • Ochsner LSU HeNalth-St. Mary Medical Center in Shreveport. • Ochsner Lafayette General Medical Center in Lafayette. UniversityMedical Center NO Names Chief Medical Officer University Medical Center New Orleans (UMC) announced that current interim chief medical offi- cer and emergency physician Jeffrey Elder, MD, has been officially named as permanent chief medical officer. Elder has worked for LCMC Health since 2009. In addition to his positions within UMC, his current roles also include LCMC Health associate chief officer for emergency management, clinical asso- ciate professor of medicine in the LSU Health Sec- tion of Emergency Medicine and co-director of Emergency Medical Services and Disaster Medi- cine as well as adjunct assistant professor in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences Jeffrey Elder, MD Quanna Batiste-Brown, DNP, RN, NEA- BC, FAAN