NANCY DAWES - Ochsner.org

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Inside outreach Up Front P 2-3 Goodbye Gustav Make Life Happen Heal the Burn Healthy Living P 4-7 Breast Assured Game Day The Flu or Not the Flu Weight No More :Up Front goodbye gustav Dear Ochsner Friends and Family, In the wake of Hurricane Gustav, we at Ochsner are very grateful. We hope that you also weathered the storm safely. Thanks to a carefully designed and well-executed disaster plan, Ochsner had limited disruptions in service, and most importantly, no loss of life. I am grateful for the successful efforts of so many in very challenging circumstances. Gustav was the first test of the new procedures put in place since Hurricane Katrina, and we’re pleased with the results. Here are some highlights: • Of our seven hospitals, the six facilities with emergency services remained fully operational, even Ochsner Medical Center – Baton Rouge and Ochsner St. Anne, which were in the 2 Reaching Higher P 8-11 Small Cure Big Difference (Hear) and Now Inside Ochsner P 12-13 Check Us Out Welcome New Physicians Reaching Out P 14-16 Fun on the Run Ochsner in the Community Ongoing Events Upcoming Events Support Groups Are We Talking To You? Go to www.OchsnerOutreach.org and tell us what kind of articles you’d like to read in Outreach. Make Life H Be an organ donor This year at Ochsner Medical Center in New Orleans, the Multi-Organ Transplant Institute celebrated several milestones in its organ transplant program with more than 1,300 kidneys, 1,000 livers and 700 hearts transplanted. These milestones are thanks to the generosity of the donors and their families, who saw through their grief to save the lives of others. “You see the good that you can do when you donate an organ to a person who is dying,” says Dr. Hector Ventura, Section Head of Heart Failure and the Heart Transplant Program at Ochsner. “The more donations there are, the more lives we can save.” Ochsner’s legacy of being a leader in organ transplantation began with Dr. John Ochsner, who performed the first heart transplant on the Gulf Coast in 1970. Today, Ochsner has grown to one of the country’s leading transplant centers in both volume and outcomes. George Loss, M.D., Ph.D., F.A.C.S., Section Head of the Abdominal Organ Transplant Program and Abdominal Transplant Surgeon, explains, “You have to have that commitment and Ochsner has that commitment. We have a lot of experience. Our patients are doing well. It’s a powerful combination.” 1-866-Ochsner www.ochsner.org
hardest-hit areas. The five facilities that used generator power for a short period of time kept air conditioning running, keeping our staff and patients comfortable in a frightening situation. And for a time, Ochsner Medical Center – Baton Rouge was the only hospital in the Baton Rouge region able to perform surgery. • Ochsner prepared ahead of time. All hospitals were prepared to be completely self-sufficient, with enough power, medical supplies, drugs, food and water to last for two full weeks. • We were able to assist area hospitals by sharing fuel and receiving patients when those facilities were at risk. In fact, Ochsner Medical Center in New Orleans received 25 patients and was prepared for more. • The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Ochsner Medical Center in New Orleans received ten babies from regional hospitals, increasing our nursery to 34 babies! The unit stayed cool, well stocked and well cared for as nurses remained nearby the entire time. • Ochsner’s 1,200 essential employees who rode out the storm within our hospitals received hot meals and sleeping accommodations. Additionally, in Baton Rouge, employees were allowed to buy gas from the hospital and other necessities at a makeshift “Och-Mart” as the city faced shortages. Family members and pets of employees were taken care of in all regions. • Over 500 patients stayed in Ochsner hospitals through Gustav, including four babies who were born during the storm. Each patient could have one family member stay with them. • A few days post-Gustav, all facilities were running as usual. On Friday, September 5th, one day after the evacuation order was lifted, we performed four transplant surgeries and began performing cath lab procedures. While Hurricane season doesn’t close until November 31st, I hope these illustrations provide peace of mind that all Ochsner hospitals and employees are ready and dedicated to meet your healthcare needs today, and in a disaster. As always, we remain “everywhere you need us.” Patrick Quinlan, M.D. Chief Executive Officer, Ochsner Health System The NICU took expert care of 34 fragile babies. appen SAVE A LIFE Make your wishes known. Register at www.lopa.org, Ycall 1-800-521-GIVE, or go to any Louisiana DMV. Plus, call 1-888-306-9748 or watch Health Link videos on Ochsner’s Transplant Program at www.ochsner.org. How Ochsner Compares Dr. Loss explains that one reason for the Abdominal Organ Transplant Program’s success is that its experienced physicians have a keen eye for choosing donor organs and a streamlined process for getting them transplanted quickly. “We have access to livers that other programs don’t use. We never use a bad liver, but we do use good livers with bad stories,” he says. “And we improve the odds of them working by implanting them quickly.” heal the burn Barrett’s esophagus, a complication of reflux, occurs when tissue in the lower esophagus is damaged. “We want to prevent Barrett’s from progressing to esophageal cancer,” says Dr. Ramon Rivera, Advanced Therapeutic Endoscopist, Department of Gastroenterology at Ochsner Medical Center in New Orleans. “The risk of developing cancer is 30 to 125 times higher in people who have Barrett’s esophagus than in people who do not.” Dr. Rivera recommends radiofrequency ablation to treat Barrett’s. The FDA-approved procedure, in which damaged tissue is destroyed, has extremely low complication rates and is 98 percent effective. Reflux itself still needs to be treated with medication and lifestyle changes. “This does not take care of the reflux,” says Dr. Rivera. “It takes care of a complication of reflux.” £ Call the Department of Gastroenterology at 1-888-306-8274 for more information and to learn about other treatments for reflux. 3 LIVER TRANSPLANTS QUALITY Ochsner National MEASURE Average Average Organ waiting time 20-30 days 20 months Graft failure rate 0.5% 2-7% 1 month patient survival 99% 96% 1 year patient survival 94% 87% Time on ice under 5 hours 91% 35%
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