HJBR May/Jun 2019

Healthcare Journal of Baton Rouge I  MAY / JUN 2019 65 For weekly eNews updates and to read the journal online, visit HealthcareJournalBR.com Physician with Special Interest in Opioid Use Disorder Woman’s Hospital announced the addition of Dr. Tara Benjamin Simon to its maternal fetal medicine team, a specialized group of OB-GYN’s trained to care for women with high risk pregnan- cies. Simon also comes to Woman’s with national recognition in caring for women with perinatal substance use disorders. A native of New Iberia, Simon began her edu- cation at Xavier University of New Orleans, then obtained a medical doctorate from Harvard Med- ical School, and completed a residency in obstet- rics and gynecology at Tulane University School of Medicine. Simon finalized a maternal fetal medi- cine fellowship at Indiana University-Purdue Uni- versity Indianapolis, where she also earned a mas- ter’s degree in clinical research and served on the clinical faculty for three years.  Simon has a specific interest in the care and management of pregnant women with opioid use disorder. As an attending physician in Indianapo- lis, she was recognized for starting the maternal recovery program, which specializes in the care and management of pregnant women with opioid use disorder. She served as its director. Maternal fetal medicine physicians care for women with high risk pregnancies, including preg- nancies age 35 at the time of delivery; women with chronic medical conditions such as diabe- tes, hypertension, or obesity; women with prior pregnancy complications, such as preterm birth, preeclampsia, or IUGR; or women expecting mul- tiple babies. Woman’s Hosts Poverty Simulation for Hospital Staff What if you only had $10 a day to meet your family’s basic needs? That is reality for some Lou- isiana residents, but it is nearly impossible for most people to comprehend. Woman’s Hospi- tal recently hosted a simulation of the real-life struggles of patients who are living in poverty. In partnership with the Baton Rouge Junior League, Capital Area United Way, LSU School of Social Work, Hope Ministries, and FranU, the goal is to cultivate a better understanding of the challenges of poverty. More than 100 healthcare workers par- ticipated in the event.  “No simulation can provide a full picture. How- ever, this experience will allow our employees to walk in the shoes of an impoverished per- son and come face to face with how complex and interconnected issues of poverty really are,” explained Laurie Schulenberg, MPA/HCA, BSN, Woman’s Hospital recently hosted a simulation of the real-life struggles of patients who are living in poverty. Hospital employees are shown participating in the event. Tara Benjamin Simon, MD RN, NEA-BC, Woman’s director of educational services. “With a greater awareness of the impact of poverty and its obstacles, our staff can more effectively work with patients.” According to 2018 statistics by the United States Census Bureau, Louisiana’s poverty is at 19.7 percent, with 26.0 percent of those liv- ing under the poverty line in Baton Rouge (https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/ batonrougecitylouisiana,la/PST045218). More than one in six Louisiana households are deemed “food insecure,” meaning those households struggle sometimes to pay for enough food to maintain a consistent, healthy life. The national poverty rate is 12.3 percent. The average fam- ily of four living in poverty makes $25,465 a year (https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/ demo/income-poverty/historical-poverty-thresh- olds.html). n