HJBR Mar/Apr 2022

64 MAR / APR 2022  I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF BATON ROUGE   Hospital Rounds adaptative therapy program that helps children with severe neuro-motor disorders learn how to participate in household activities through assis- tive technology. With this program, parents can also learn how to bring these activities home to integrate their child’s therapy into daily life. “This new partnership will allow us to expand the work started by our organization and the McMains family over 68 years ago,” shared Anne Hindrichs, McMains executive director. “We are excited for this transition that will better serve our patients and their families. This new partner- ship was necessary to ensure continued growth of McMains and to help children become as inde- pendent as possible using the tools of Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Health, which has a proven track record in delivering quality care and services to our community.” “The patients and families of the Children’s Developmental Center meant the world to my father,” said Andrew “Ty” McMains, son of the Center’s first medical director and namesake, Frank McMains, MD. “His commitment to them during his 33 years with the Center was para- mount. We are excited and look forward to the integration with Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Health and know that it will maintain the quality of care for these children and enhance the offerings that Our Lady of the Lake can provide.” Patients can be referred by their physician for Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Health develop- mental medicine services. Families can call (225) 374-HEAL for more information and to schedule future appointments. Health Leaders Network Improves Quality, Reduces Cost of Care in 2020 Health Leaders Medicare ACO Network, a sub- sidiary of Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System, announced that the network has achieved more than $13 million in cost savings for 22,559 Medicare beneficiaries. These cost sav- ings are reflected in performance year 2020 and reported as part of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) accountable care orga- nization (ACO) initiative called the Next Genera- tion ACO Model. The Next Generation ACO Model, in its fifth year, allows for setting more predictable financial targets, gives patients more opportunities to man- age their own health through technology and enables providers to better coordinate care across the entire continuum. Health Leaders Medicare ACONetwork is comprised of Franciscan Mission- aries of Our Lady Health System and Baton Rouge Clinic providers. With more than 22,500 Medicare beneficiaries, Health Leaders Medicare ACO Net- work is the only Next Generation ACO in the state of Louisiana. In performance year 2020, Health Leaders Medi- care ACONetwork received a 97.81% overall qual- ity performance score. With such a high score, the network earned an “excellent” rating from CMS and is ranked among the top performing ACOs in the country. “Since the very beginning of our physician col- laboration, our Health Leaders Medicare ACO Network has more than held its own among ACOs across the country,” said Christopher Funes, MD, president of Health Leaders Network. “We’re making care more coordinated and efficient for our Medicare beneficiaries — those citizens in our community who deserve to be treated with the highest level of care and compassion. Through our ACO, we’ll continue to set an example for other health systems across the Gulf South. “I am enormously proud of the Health Lead- ers Medicare ACO Network and the success we have had in improving the quality of care for seniors while reducing costs,” said Richard Vath, MD, CEO of Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System. “As our partnership demonstrates, collaboration and information-sharing among pro- viders is key to ensuring the highest quality of care and improving patient outcomes. Our ACOmodel also stands as an example of what can be accom- plished when we work together to reduce the cost of healthcare.” COVID ICU Patients, Families Helping to Give Back to Baton Rouge General A group of families grateful to the care teams in Baton Rouge General’s COVID intensive care unit (ICU) have come together to raise funds for improvements on the unit, including brighter lighting and upgraded break rooms. Ronnie Anderson, former head of the Louisiana Farm Bureau, was in the COVID ICU for 50 days, first arriving with COVID-19 on March 18, 2020. With his wife, Vivian, there to greet him, he was finally discharged from BRG after 64 days. “We were able to visit with the ICU staff months later, as they were still continuing to fight COVID every day,” said Vivian Anderson. “We were even more compelled to do whatever we could to show our appreciation for the care and compassion they gave to us.” Joining the Andersons for the meet-up with ICU staff were Darrel and Liz Vannoy. Darrel, a warden with the Louisiana Department of Corrections, was admitted to Baton Rouge General on Jan. 8, 2021, where he remained on a ventilator in the COVID ICU for nearly a month. Part of the group was Dianne Sykora, who wants to help to raise money in memory of her husband Jim following 103 days in BRG’s ICU last year. Lynn and Tom Gilmore connected with the group of grateful families to lend their support. Tom was the first COVID-19 patient admitted to BRG on March 16. In the hospital 89 days total, he was on a ventilator for 10 weeks and in a coma for eight weeks. “For nearly two years now, the ICU team has been in the trenches as they cared for so many patients in our community with COVID-19,” said Erik Showalter, president of the Baton Rouge Gen- eral Foundation. “We are grateful to these fam- ilies for their passion to give back and support our team.” With a goal of $70,000, the families are more than halfway there. n