Ochsner Hospital for Children announced plans for the Michael R. Boh Center for Child Development, which will offer personalized, family-centered care to children with neuromuscular or physical disabilities, and neurocognitive, behavioral and communication-related conditions. Generously funded by Ann and Robert Boh, the state-of-the-art facility will open in 2018.

The Center will fill a critical need for specialized pediatric care. Approximately 20% of children in Louisiana have special health care needs. The Boh Center for Child Development will be the only facility in the region to offer this type of comprehensive care under one roof.

– Thomas Harris Jr., Vice President of Pediatrics, Ochsner Hospital for Children 

Greater New Orleans, Inc. (GNO Inc.) released its State of the Sector report focusing on the health sciences industry in the Greater New Orleans region. This analysis focuses on current and future workforce and job opportunities over the next 10 years in the Greater New Orleans region.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana generously provided funding for this report. The report found that the health sciences sector employs 77,805 people in the Greater New Orleans region and has grown by 27% over the past decade. Furthermore, the industry is projected to grow 17% over the next 10 years.

– Michael Hecht, GNO, Inc.

Ochsner Baptist recently celebrated the opening if its new inpatient units on the hospital’s third floor. The newly renovated unit consists of 29 private patient rooms, 16 beds for surgical patients and 13 beds for antepartum patients. Antepartum beds are for expectant mothers who may have a high-risk pregnancy and may require an additional level of monitoring, observation and sometimes hospitalization.

In addition to this expansion, Ochsner Baptist recently celebrated its 10,000th delivery since relocating Women’s Services to the Napoleon Avenue campus.

For more information on the services available at Ochsner Baptist, click or call 504-899-9311.

– Dawn Anuszkiewicz, Ochsner Baptist

Ochsner Hospital for Children is ranked among the top 50 children’s hospitals in the country for pediatric cardiology and heart surgery in the 2017-2018 U.S. News and World Report’s Best Children’s Hospitals rankings. It’s the only hospital in Louisiana and Mississippi to be recognized and offers one of the largest pediatric cardiology programs in the Gulf South.

Serving more than 76,000 children every year, with more than 120 physicians in 30 pediatric specialties and sub-specialties, Ochsner Hospital for Children has the only pediatric heart and liver transplant program in LA. Click here to schedule an appointment.

– Dr. William Lennarz, System Chair of Pediatrics and Associate Medical Director of Pediatrics, Ochsner Health System

Ochsner Health System recently committed more than $100 million in expansion projects to the Baton Rouge region for greater access to medical care for patients.

This includes the newly renovated, now open, Ochsner Baton Rouge Cancer Center, offering chemotherapy infusion and radiation oncology; the development of a new medical office building, micro-hospital and surgical center along the I-10 and Bluebonnet/Siegen corridor, scheduled to open in 2019; and new clinics across multiple parishes.

This commitment is about delivering convenient and accessible care that is close to home, where patients need it the most. For more information, click here.

– Warner Thomas, President and CEO, Ochsner Health System

Twenty-one student cyclists with the Texas 4000 for Cancer, the longest charity bike ride in the world, stopped at the Gayle and Tom Benson Cancer Center at Ochsner Medical Center to present a $10,000 contribution to Ochsner’s Radiation Transportation Fund, which helps patients defer travel costs associated with regular radiation therapy visits.

Texas 4000 Founder Chris Condit was treated for Hodgkins Lymphoma at Ochsner as a child nearly 25 years ago. The mission of his foundation is to raise awareness, funds and hope in the ongoing fight against cancer.

For more information on Ochsner Cancer Institute, click here.

– Troy Scroggins, MD, Department Chairman, Radiation Oncology, Ochsner Cancer Institute

June is National Men’s Health Month. On average, men are less likely than women to visit their physician, follow up on symptoms and risk factors, or get recommended screenings.

While many men hesitate to discuss erectile dysfunction and low testosterone, these issues have been linked to serious conditions like heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Addressing these important concerns can help find serious conditions when they are easiest to treat.

Ochsner’s Men’s Health Clinics offer same-day, concierge-style appointments specializing in these issues, providing access to multiple specialists in one location. For more information, click here.

– Eric Laborde, Director, Men’s Health Clinic, Ochsner Medical Center

June 27 is a day to better understand HIV. As National HIV Testing Day, it provides an opportunity for the one in eight people living with undiagnosed HIV to be tested. The CDC estimates that 1.2 million people in the U.S. are currently living with HIV.

In New Orleans, the Tulane T-Cell Clinic provides a free, discrete and convenient location to be tested and get the facts about HIV. Dr. MarkAlain Dery founded the clinic with the phrase “care with confidence” in mind. He and his fellow physicians assist their patients through testing, education, treatment and beyond.

– Sarah H. Centorino, The New Orleans 100

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a debilitating motor neuron disease that affects 30,000 people in the U.S. Patients experience difficulty moving, speaking, swallowing and breathing – leading to respiratory failure. The Ochsner ALS Center, a Recognized Treatment Center by the ALS Association, is a comprehensive center treating these patients.

Voice Banking is an innovative service offered and conducted by UQ – Ochsner Clinical School students that allows patients to preserve their voices so they are available once they lose the ability to speak. After recording over 1,600 preselected and personal phrases, patients are given a lasting ability to communicate.

– Daniel Larriviere, MD, Vice-Chair for Neurology and Director of the Neuromuscular Division, Ochsner Health System

It’s easy to find excuses for why we couldn’t stick to our routine workout schedule — it was too hard, too much to do and we weren’t ready.

However, what if your commitment was to simply walk 15 extra minutes a day? Walk to work, walk during a lunch break, walk the block at night. It may seem like it’s not worth it, right? Wrong!

That small amount of exercise is the exact, constant gentle pressure that is needed to keep pushing yourself. It prepares you, so when the time is right you can make those major changes down the road.

– Emily Krueger, The Boston 100

With the addition of Ochsner Urgent Care, Ochsner Health System is increasing access to convenient, non-emergency care services throughout New Orleans.

It is important to seek the correct level of care for your illness or ailment. For annual checkups and care for chronic illnesses, primary care physicians are the appropriate level of care, while urgent care clinics are a great option for minor illnesses, sprains and broken bones, offering after-hours and weekend care. For serious life-threatening issues, an emergency room is the best place for the higher level of care required.

To book an appointment, visit here.

– Dr. Pedro Cazabon, Department Chair for Adult Primary Care, Ochsner Health System

Ochsner Baptist’s Functional Restoration is a new, innovative program for patients disabled with chronic back pain who have been through all the conventional therapies.

This program provides patients with a team of multidisciplinary experts to guide them through a five-day-a-week, three-week comprehensive outpatient program all delivered in the same location. Patients receive individualized counseling, pain management, physical and occupational therapy, wellness and nutrition services – all focused on restoring active lifestyles, achieving better functional outcomes and reducing unnecessary healthcare services.

To schedule an evaluation, call 504.894.2709. To support the patient assistance fund, click here.

– Dr. Lesley Walsh, Medical Director, Functional Restoration Program, Ochsner Baptist

According to Neurology Today, more than 36 million people in the US suffer from migraines, and women are 3x more likely to suffer than men.

A migraine is a neurologic condition with symptoms such as headache, throbbing, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, sensitivity to light, and numbness. My practice, the Neurology Center of New England, has a center dedicated specifically to treat and reduce migraines.

Many people who suffer from migraines are undiagnosed, and don’t know that migraines can be treated. There are natural remedies, as well as treatments such as Botox and the latest migraine medicine to nearly eliminate your migraines.

– Dr. Salvatore Napoli, The Boston 100

More than 119,000 men, women and children are on the national transplant waiting list. In Louisiana, more than 2,000 people are waiting for transplants. Transplantation gives hope to thousands of people each year. Through organ donation, you can help save and enhance the lives of these people. Each donor can save up to nine lives.

Since its inception, Ochsner’s Multi-Organ Transplant Institute has successfully performed more than 6,000 lifesaving liver, kidney, pancreas, heart and lung transplants in adult and pediatric patients. View patient stories here.

To learn more and register to be an organ donor here.

– Dr. Nigel Girgrah, Medical Director, Ochsner Multi-Organ Transplant Institute

Each year, 600 babies are born with a congenital heart defect. That’s 1 in 100 births in our state. On average, more than 40 newborns die from heart defects annually.

Home to the Gulf South’s first pediatric heart transplant, Ochsner Hospital for Children boasts a state-of-the-art Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit (CVICU), the only one of its kind in the state. The CVICU opened in 2016 and delivers critical cardiac services to the region’s sickest patients.

Click here to see how our team of specialized doctors, nurses and therapists are working every day to save and change lives.

– Dr. William Lennarz, System Chair of Pediatrics and Associate Medical Director of Pediatrics, Ochsner Hospital for Children

Working as a team, Slidell Memorial Hospital and Ochsner provide patients a wider range of options for accessing high quality care.

Together, we are focused on delivering coordinated care through our combined services such as Cardiology, Telemedicine and Rehabilitation Services. These offerings allow us to address the more complex cases that we see in our patient population, as well as supporting them along their entire patient journey in achieving better health outcomes.

Our partnership in East St. Tammany has served as a catalyst to advance innovation. Together, we will continue to find opportunities to best support our community’s healthcare needs.

– Bill Davis, Chief Executive Officer of the Slidell Market, SMH-Ochsner Medical Center-Northshore

As the population of West St. Tammany grows, so does the partnership between St. Tammany Parish Hospital (STPH) and the Ochsner Health Network.

Ochsner pediatric subspecialists saw 1,500 children in the cobranded clinic in 2016, and the newly opened STPH pediatric emergency department allows for the broadest spectrum of pediatric care. Ochsner added neurosurgeons at STPH and enabled neurosurgery procedures to increase from 228 in 2014 to 355 in 2016, while STPH is building a Neurosurgery Critical Care Unit to accommodate post-neurosurgery patients. Together, St. Tammany and Ochsner are delivering results. For more on the partnership, click here.

– Patti Ellish, FACHE, President and CEO, St. Tammany Parish Hospital

The Precision Cancer Therapies Program at Ochsner Cancer Institute offers new hope to cancer patients who may have thought they had no options. Fewer than 3% of adult cancer patients in Louisiana enroll in clinical trials; yet enrolled patients typically experience better outcomes than those who do not participate.

Through the program, patients are given access to early phase clinical trials that allow them to receive innovative therapies years before they are available. This connects Ochsner’s clinical expertise with the world-renowned Translational Genomics Research Institute – or TGEN.

For more information on clinical trials, visit or call 504-800-6370.

– Dr. Marc Matrana, Medical Director, Ochsner Precision Cancer Therapies Program

Ochsner Health System was the first in the country to introduce the O Bar — a concept of the “genius bar” in a health setting. With the help of technology specialists, this free service — offered at three different locations — allows people to better navigate their health using interactive technology after every doctor’s visit.

As we enter the New Year and people look for downloadable apps to stay on track and keep their fitness goals alive, one of our specialists provided his top 7 health apps for successful New Year’s resolutions. Learn more about the O Bar and our three locations here.

– Richard Milani, Chief Clinical Transformation Officer, Ochsner Health System

This quiz indicated more than 2.4 million germs likely live on my workplace keyboard – more than the number on 420 public toilets.

Considering people tend to touch their faces (eyes, noses, mouths) about 16 times each day, it is enough to be sickening. Germs can live on solid surfaces for up to 48 hours, especially flu germs.

Tip #3: Clean and sanitize your keyboard, telephones, desks and doorknobs weekly provided you’re the only one to touch these. Clean daily if these items are touched by multiple people every day. Alcohol on a cloth or cotton swabs to the rescue!

– Deneen Bloom, S&A Communications

We all hear the term mobility and are told how important it is; however, we rarely get a proper explanation of what it really means.

Mobility is not simply how much flexibility you have, but it is your ability to move through simple and complex movements properly. Proper mobility requires flexibility, strength and stability. A lack of or dysfunction in any of these areas will lead to altered movements that will diminish your performance and significantly increase your likelihood of injury.

Whether you are currently involved in regular exercise or planning to get into something new, have your mobility checked.

– Dr. Michael Poplak DC, ART, Triangle Chiropractic

Let’s face it, Americans spend a lot of time working. According to the US Department of Labor, employed Americans ages 24-54 spend 8.9 hours per day working or on work-related activities. That’s 1,900+ hours each year factoring in weekends, vacations and holidays.

How can we boost our health at work?

Tip 1: Switch to a standing desk or a variable one that adjusts for standing or sitting. This alleviates prolonged sedentary hours seated, which are not good for your back or neck. Plus, standing at a desk burns more calories than sitting. Calculate your calories burned.

– Deneen Bloom, S&A Communications