HJBR Jan/Feb 2021

58 JAN / FEB 2021  I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF BATON ROUGE   Hospital Rounds learn there at our existing and future facilities.” In the ER, there is no waiting room, which comes at a time when reducing the spread of illness is more important than ever. If a patient is there for emergency care, when they stop at the main lob- by’s front desk, the clinical team will be notified and will take the patient right back to a room. The streamlined process continues once they’re in an exam room, with a team of staff members treat- ing the patient together. “The goal is for the patient to spend as little time as possible in the more routine parts of their ER visit, like the check-in and discharge process. Instead, the focus is on their interaction with our clinical team as they work quickly to diagnose and treat the patient,” Tenreiro added. On the second floor of the state-of-the-art facil- ity, Candace Moore, MD, and Khaki Hazzlerigg, FNP-C, treat all types of women’s health needs – from pregnancy and birth control refills to gyn well visits and osteoporosis. The smaller neigh- borhood hospital means everything women might need, like lab work, 3D mammograms and bone density scans, is just downstairs from the Baton Rouge General Physicians-Obstetrics & Gynecol- ogy office. Also on the second floor of the hospital is BRGP- Ascension, a primary care clinic previously located in Oak Grove. Whether they have an existing BRG physician or not, patients can get their physical therapy in the new location. If recovering from an injury or issue that requires multiple visits pers week, BRG- Ascension’s convenient location makes it easy for people who live or work in Ascension Parish. North Oaks NICUReunion Scheduled Dec. 5 as Drive-thru Event North Oaks Medical Center’s Neonatal Inten- sive Care Unit (NICU) Reunion will look a little dif- ferent this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. North Oaks Medical Center NICU graduates and their families will reunite with the health- care professionals who cared for them by driving through the hospital campus to enjoy traditional event festivities in a reimagined, socially distanced way between 9 a.m.-11 a.m. on Dec. 5. To RSVP, register online at www.northoaks.org/ nicureunion. At the time of registration, families will get further instructions on check-in proce- dures and an invitation to join the NICU Reunion Facebook Event to receive special messages and updates. As guests trek through the hospital campus in their vehicles, they will stop at different stations along the route, where they will receive a to-go breakfast, a commemorative gift, a chance to deliver letters to Santa, and even take safe pho- tos with him. Caroling with the Livingston Parish Children’s Choirs and a contest to name the best- decorated vehicle also will be among the host of special activities. NICUs are hospital units that care for babies who are born too early or have serious illnesses. While the babies are in the hospital, families and the hospital staff often form strong bonds. “We fight so hard for our NICU graduates to leave the hospital and go home to their fami- lies as healthy as possible,” explains North Oaks Women and Children’s Services Director Tamara Mitchell. “We become like family, and that is why we are overjoyed to have worked out a way with our infection prevention specialists to continue this precious tradition in such an unprecedented year.” FMOLHS Hospitals Recognized for Efforts to Increase Organ, Eye, Tissue Donation Awareness Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health Sys- tem (FMOLHS) hospitals in Louisiana and Missis- sippi earned platinum recognition for their efforts to increase organ, eye, and tissue donor regis- trations and awareness of the need across both states. This award was presented by the Louisi- ana Organ Procurement Agency (LOPA) and Mis- sissippi Organ Recovery Agency (MORA) as part of the Workplace Partnership for Life (WPFL) - a national initiative uniting the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the organ dona- tion community with workplaces throughout the nation to spread the word about the importance of donation. “Increasing awareness of organ donation has an incredible impact on patients and their families,” said Steven Gremillion, MD, chief medical officer of FMOLHS. “In each of our communities, thou- sands of people are in need of organ, eye, and tis- sue transplants. By raising awareness for the need, we are increasing recipient matches and highlight- ing the selfless actions of these silent heroes.” Louisiana hospitals Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center in Lafayette, Our Lady of the Angels Hospital in Bogalusa, Our Lady of the Lake Ascension in Gonzales, Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital and Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center in Baton Rouge, and St. Francis Medical Center in Monroe and in Missis- sippi, and St. Dominic’s Hospital in Jackson were each recognized. The program challenges hospitals and health- care organizations to educate their staff, patients, visitors, and communities about the critical need for organ, eye and tissue donation and by offering them opportunities to register as donors. This year’s campaign broke participation records with 1,700 hospitals helping to add 59,000 donor registrations between October of 2019 and May of 2020. In the nine years of the campaign, partners have added more than 552,000 donor registra- tions—increasing the number of organs available for transplantation to improve the lives of others. More than 112,000 people are waiting for the gift of life-saving organs and many more for the gift of transplantable tissue for life healing proce- dures. Every 10 minutes, another person is added to the organ transplant list, reaffirming the criti- cal and growing need for registered organ, eye, and tissue donors. For more information about the hospital campaign, visit organdonor.gov/hospi- tals. To sign up as a donor, go to donatelifela.org. Asbel Montes Elected to American Ambulance Association Board of Directors Acadian Companies Vice President of Strategic Initiatives and Innovation Asbel Montes has been named to the American Ambulance Association (AAA) Board of Directors. He will serve as direc- tor of region IV for two years, beginning in 2022. The region spans Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico. Montes has been a member of AAA since 2009 and previously served as a board member from 2010-2013. He has served as co-chair and is the current chair of the organization’s payment reform committee. He has served on the cost data col- lection committee. Montes is a leader on reimbursement initiatives