HJBR Sep/Oct 2020

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF BATON ROUGE I  SEP / OCT 2020 33 For weekly eNews updates and to read the journal online, visit HealthcareJournalBR.com pain, and • The Louisiana State Opioid Response (LaSOR), a program enhancing existing statewide prevention, treatment and recov- ery support services for individuals with or at risk for opioid use disorder. “We expect ATLAS to be another excellent tool in our efforts to combat the opioid epidemic. In Louisiana, fatal opioid overdoses have risen from 259 in 2014 to 470 in 2018. These numbers show that families can use all the help they can find,” Stubbs said. Additionally, ATLAS will:  • Measure alcohol and drug treatment facili- ties’ use of best practices through a com- bination of validated data sources, • Provide data to these facilities about ser- vices offered to help them improve care, and • Enable treatment facilities submitting data to benchmark themselves against their peers and to design data-driven quality improvement initiatives. While most alcohol and drug treatment facili- ties across Louisiana are listed on ATLAS, 33% vol- untarily reported on their services and practices. ATLAS also includes feedback from patients once a minimum threshold of 20 responses per facility is met. This data updates every 24 hours. ATLAS initially will be available to the pilot states before expanding nationwide. The plat- form is found at http://treatmentatlas.org. The NeuroMedical Center EnrollsWorld’s First Patient in Phase III MS Clinical Trial The NeuroMedical Center announced that MS neurologist, Dr. April A. Erwin, in partnership with Delricht Research, has enrolled the world’s first patient in a Phase III clinical trial to test the safety and effectiveness of an investigational, brain-pen- etrant, oral therapy to treat patients with relaps- ing multiple sclerosis (MS). The investigational drug SAR442168, being developed by Sanofi, a global biopharmaceutical company, aims to be the first disease-modifying therapy for MS with a mechanism of action related to Bruton’s Tyro- sine Kinase inhibition. Erwin will serve as a prin- cipal investigator in this clinical trial, which will be conducted in 40 countries around the world. MS is a chronic, neurodegenerative autoim- mune disease that results in inflammation of the protective covering around nerves in the brain and spinal cord, which may result in debilitat- ing neurologic symptoms. There is no cure for MS, and currently FDA-approved therapies aim to prevent MS relapses, MRI lesions, and clinical disability. According to Erwin, “Innovative stud- ies like the SAR442168 clinical trial sponsored by Sanofi are important to help determine whether this investigational drug could be beneficial for patients with relapsing MS.” Enrollment is now open for the SAR442168 Clinical Trial at The NeuroMedical Center and at test sites worldwide. Researchers will enroll 900 patients in this global, randomized, double-blind efficacy and safety trial. For more information on how to enroll for this clinical trial or to see a full list of current enrolling studies at The NeuroMedi- cal Center, visit www.theneuromedicalcenter.com NextGen Public Service Awards Honors Two from LDHOffice of Public Health Theresa Sokol and Amanda Ames from the Louisiana Department of Health will be honored with NextGen Public Service Awards during the virtual NextGen Government Training Summit in August. Sokol is the recipient of the Dedication Dur- ing COVID-19 Award. This honor recognizes “an individual who has gone above and beyond dur- ing the coronavirus pandemic or has worked to ensure business continuity so that the mission of their agency is still accomplished in these unpar- alleled times. He/she has shown a commitment to improve and inspire their organization or com- munity at the local, state, national or international level,” according to NextGen. Sokol is the assis- tant state epidemiologist for the Infectious Dis- ease Epidemiology Section, Office of Public Health. Ames is the recipient of the 2020 Courageous Champion award. This award recognizes a public servant who is “blazing the path for their genera- tion in government with courage and determina- tion at the local, national, or international level.” Ames is the chief engineering for Engineering Services, Office of Public Health Local Organizations Receive COVID-19 Recovery Grants Louisiana Healthcare Connections announced that six community-based organizations have been awarded funding through the health plan’s COVID-19 Recovery Grants Program. The COVID-19 Recovery Grants Pro- gram awards grants of up to $5,000 each to assist eligible organizations in implementing innova- tive solutions to address the social service and healthcare needs of those affected by the COVID- 19 pandemic. Organizations selected for funding awards include: • Boys & Girls Clubs of Acadiana in Lafayette for its project, “BGCA: Doing Whatever It Takes” • Evangeline Community Action Agency in Ville Platte for its project, “Health & Safety Care Packages” • Our Daily Bread Food Bank in Hammond for its project, “Operation Compassion: COVID-19 Response” Theresa Sokol Amanda Ames