HJBR May/Jun 2022

42 MAY / JUN 2022  I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF BATON ROUGE   Healthcare Briefs will discuss the issue’s impact on our state and actions healthcare providers can take. Addition- ally, the “Lunch and Learn” sessions will include tips to streamline claims and administration, and to maximize quality-based incentives offered to providers by Louisiana Healthcare Connections. These learning opportunities also qualify for continuing education credits (CEs, CMEs, and CNEs) for physicians, nurses, and social workers, where applicable. “These peer-to-peer sessions focus on real- world healthcare challenges facing physicians in our state, helping providers solve the issues they see every day in their practices,” said Stew- art Gordon, MD, chief medical officer for Louisi- ana Healthcare Connections. “In this way, we help ensure the highest quality care for our members.” Attendance is free, but registration is required. Interested healthcare professionals should sign up at https://lahealth.cc/learn. The Lodge at Lane in Zachary Opens The Lodge at Lane in Zachary, an all-new assisted living, memory care and skilled nursing care facility, opened its doors to new residents on March 15. The 90-room complex, which includes 39 assisted living suites plus 12 suites for mem- ory care and 39 skilled nursing rooms, has been under construction since late 2020 next to Lane Regional Medical Center. According to Kaley Hill, president of Home- town Healthcare Management, which owns and will operate the facility, “Our company and our employees are excited to open The Lodge at Lane to the people of Zachary and the surround- ing region.” Tamara K. Dayton, LCSW, has been named to the position of director/community relations for The Lodge at Lane and has been active in the ongoing construction of the facility and in the final planning. Dayton has been a resident of Zachary for more than 27 years and earned a Master’s in Social Work in 1996 from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. Following com- pletion of her education, she joined the staff of Lane Regional Medical Center in Zachary where she served for nearly 25 years as social services supervisor. She is a licensed clinical social worker. The facility encompasses nearly 75,000 square feet of new construction on its campus. Current staff of Lane Senior Care will be brought into the overall staff at The Lodge at Lane while additional staffing have been brought on board as the open- ing date nears. “Our goal is for The Lodge at Lane to be a staple in our community and a place our residents are proud to call home,” said John Stagg, CEO of Hometown Healthcare Manage- ment. “This facility will be a positive addition to our community for many years to come and will serve the people of our region with respect and dignity.” Acquired from Lane Regional by Hometown Healthcare Management in the fall of 2020, Lane Nursing Home now continues to serve families and residents but will operate under the name The Lodge at Lane. Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center Welcomes Danielle Ritchie as NewDirector of Tumor Registry Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center announced that Danielle Ritchie will now serve as the organi- zation’s director of tumor registry. She is charged with leading the tumor registry team and provid- ing ongoing management of registry services for the Cancer Center’s comprehensive and inte- grated oncology program. “At Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center, we take a data-driven approach to research and cancer treatment development,” said Jonas Fontenot, PhD, chief operating officer and chief of physics, Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center. “Through care- ful cancer surveillance, sophisticated data track- ing and a stellar team of registrars, our tumor registry arms us with information to guide our decision-making and steer our cancer fighting strategy. It gives us the data we need to plan and evaluate cancer prevention and control interven- tions, allowing us to deploy our resources in ways that most benefit our communities.” “We are excited to have Danielle at the helm of our tumor registry. Her in-depth knowledge and experience will help ensure that Mary Bird Per- kins Cancer Center stays on the leading-edge of cancer research and treatment.” Ritchie has nearly 14 years’ experience in can- cer registry data collection and management. She returns to Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center after previously working for the organization for 11 years. Ritchie earned her tumor registrar cer- tification in March 2018 and serves as a member of the Louisiana Cancer Registrar’s Association and the National Cancer Registrar’s Association. The tumor registry functions under the qual- ity services department to collect data on cancer type, stage, and treatment results and offers life- long patient follow-up. These cases are reported, as required and per HIPAA standards, to the American College of Surgeons (ACoS), the Loui- siana Tumor Registry (LTR), the National Cancer Data Base (NCDB) and the Surveillance, Epide- miology and End Results (SEER) program of the National Cancer Institute. When combined with other cancer cases nationally, researchers can identify trends in cancer incidence and mortality, as well as patterns in diagnosis, treatment and survival. 2022 Health Summit Outlines Policy Solutions Public health professionals, education profes- sionals, and individuals invested in the well-being of Louisianans gathered virtually for the 2022 Health Summit: Pathways through Policy for Equi- table Recovery. Local, state, and nationally recog- nized speakers lead discussions around pathways to equitable recovery, renewal, and resilience to move Louisiana forward. “Louisiana has been impacted by so many dif- ferent disasters over the past two years,” said Alma Stewart, summit organizer and Louisiana Center for Health Equity founder/president. “It is important that equity remains at the forefront of recovery and that we build resilient communi- ties with members who can be decision-makers in Danielle Ritchie