HJBR Mar/Apr 2021

24 MAR / APR 2021 I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF BATON ROUGE STATE OF LOUISIANA’S HOSPITALS Many members of our healthcare force are frazzled, especially on the hospital level. What are some of the best practices you see hospitals doing to support their staff? I think we’ve all been awestruck by examples of healthcare workers’ courage and resilience during what’s been described as a marathon- like pandemic. Many people who enter nursing or other healthcare professions do so because they want to help others. Our healthcare heroes have shown up to care for patients every day during the pandemic; some of them even did so knowing that a hurricane was destroying their homes. They’ve helped their clinical teams re- cover and learn from setbacks — like the current vaccine supply shortage or early fears of running out of ventilators — and they’ve inspired their communities as they work toward a day when we can put this pandemic behind us. Hospitals provide a broad range of pro- grams to support their employees, including wellness programs, housing, meals, child care, public recognition, bonus pay, counseling and peer support. During the pandemic, Louisiana hospitals also collaborated statewide to assist hurricane-displaced employees as they rebuild their homes. What legislation does LHA plan to propose this session and why? We’re still working with our board to develop our advocacy agenda for 2021. Our advocacy efforts will continue focusing on building the healthcare workforce through the Health Works Commission with the use of capitation and sti- pend programs for nursing education. We will continue working with higher education leaders to improve Louisiana’s nurse training pipeline. Our advocacy efforts will also focus on mak- ing sure healthcare is protected from harmful budget cuts that would weaken Louisiana’s pandemic response efforts. Finally, advancing transparency, accountability, and simplification in both the commercial and Medicaid plans is a top priority for our members as these adminis- trative costs raise the cost of care for all. Are we, as an industry, planning well for the future; and what would you, personally, like to see happen? The current pandemic has shown our indus- try’s ability to quickly learn and adapt existing processes when new research and science emerge. Examples of our adaptability that have played out during the current pandemic include shorter hospitalizations, decreased ventilator us- age, and the successes surrounding monoclonal antibody administration and other treatments that didn’t exist prior to December 2019. Looking forward, I believe hospitals, payers and elected officials will continue to discuss ways to ensure our industry has the necessary workforce, capacity and supply chain to handle future hospital surges and pandemics. Often- times, existing payment systems do not cover such investments. During the pandemic, we saw many examples of people publicly thanking healthcare workers. What’s the best way to thank them today? Doing our part to reduce the spread of the virus is, by far, the best way to thank Louisi- ana’s front-line hospital heroes, who have been working tirelessly to provide help and hope to patients when they are at their most vulner- able. Since the pandemic began more than a year ago, these heroes faced long hours and self-isolation from their own family members. In spite of these challenges, they focused on saving lives and made patients their first prior- ity. They adapted to unprecedented hardships, knowing that their communities trust and de- pend on them during times of crisis. They’ve made a positive difference for generations of Americans, and we applaud them for their dedi- cation and compassion. Do you have advice for people who are considering getting vaccinated but still have questions? I encourage people with vaccine-related questions to seek answers from physicians and medical experts. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offers helpful answers at www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/ index.html. While mask wearing and social dis- tancing are effective defenses against COVID, Louisiana’s medical experts are confident that vaccination is our best offensive weapon in the fight to end this global pandemic. With these safe and effective vaccines, we’re one step clos- er to returning to the moments we cherish the most and watching local business reopen and thrive. Information on COVID vaccine eligibil- ity and locations is available through LDH at https://ldh.la.gov/covidvaccine. n