People & Flashes

ABiz People & Flashes

by Walter Pierce

Local hires, promotions and honors

Dr. Danielle Decou Muse joined the dental practice of Dr. Samuel R. Moss, located at 217 E. Kaliste Saloom Road. A Youngsville native and STM alumna, Muse graduated from UL Lafayette and earned her doctorate from the LSU School of Dentistry. She is a member of the American Dental Association, American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, Acadiana District Dental Association, Louisiana Dental Association, Acadiana Southern Society and the Academy of General Dentistry.

Sara Tannehill joined the real estate law firm of Andrus, Boudreaux, Landry, Coussan as a title attorney. After graduating from law school, Tannehill clerked for Judge Donald W. Hebert at the 27th Judicial District in St. Landry Parish, dealing with all aspects of state civil and criminal proceedings. She then joined Preis & Roy, where she practiced mass tort litigation and insurance defense. She is licensed to practice in the Louisiana Supreme Court, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and the U.S. District Courts for Eastern, Middle, and Western District of Louisiana. She is a member of the Louisiana State Bar Association, Lafayette Parish Bar Association-Young Lawyer's Section and the705 Young Leaders of Acadiana.

Det. Todd Borel of the Lafayette Police Department received a 2013 Louisiana Bankers Association Law Enforcement Officer of the Year Award. Borel was nominated by Huey Decou of First National Bank of Louisiana in Crowley. Each year, LBA recognizes outstanding law enforcement officers who assist banks with the investigation of financial crimes. The officers are nominated by bankers from across the state.

Dr. Luis A. Meza, who specializes in hematology/oncology, is now medical director for the Hyperbaric Medicine program at The Regional Medical Center of Acadiana. Diabetic and other patients with sores and wounds that time just won't heal can be treated in four state-of-the-art hyperbaric chambers at the Congress Street hospital. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy-trained physicians and technicians are present at all times to monitor sessions.

Pellerin Energy Group named Benjamin Potier director of business development within its Water Solutions business unit. Based in Broussard, Potier leads client development initiatives while expanding and generating new business opportunities that emphasize water treatment across PEG's portfolio of products and services. With more than nine years of experience in the produced water market, Potier's duties have ranged from project engineering to director of operations roles. He most recently worked at Siemens in the water technologies business unit where his responsibilities included management of the offshore aftermarket, reverse osmosis and flowback services. Potier received a BS in mechanical engineering from UL Lafayette before earning an MBA there.

Kim Neustrom joined BBR Creative as account executive, providing strategic guidance and project management support for its clients and functioning as a liaison between the agency's account service and creative departments. The Lafayette native gained experience in marketing, public relations and fundraising efforts working for Acadiana-area nonprofits, including United Way, Big Brothers Big Sisters and Habitat for Humanity. Neustrom also held on-air talent and marketing positions for KATC TV-3, KLFY TV-10 and 88.7 KRVS-FM.

Courtney Begnaud joined Acadiana Metro Realty's residential real estate division. She has more than 10 years of sales, marketing and customer service experience and is a member of the Realtor Association of Acadiana, Louisiana Realtors Association and the National Association of Realtors.

Art Young joined Prejean Creative Advertising & Design, contributing a variety of skills, including content development, writing and marketing strategy. He has more than 30 years of experience for an array of clients, including Gordo's Cheese Dip, Texas Back Institute, Verizon and NIKE. Young is the editor of the monthly outdoor sports digital magazine, The Outpost, and has worked as a creative director and consultant for a number of U.S. and Canadian advertising and public relations agencies, along with a number of corporations. His experience includes sports marketing, new product feasibility and children's marketing. A graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, Young has earned several awards for his work in business communications, public relations and advertising creative.

HB Rentals, a Superior Energy Services company, named John Trahan director of quality and supply chain. Based at the corporate office in Broussard, Trahan leads the development, implementation and ongoing management of global quality programs in establishing policies and strategy related to customer quality needs, expectations and industry standards. He has more than 25 years of experience in the telecom and semiconductor industries, having worked for Pantech Wireless, Nokia Mobile Phones and Texas Instruments. Trahan is a certified Six Sigma Green Belt, an a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and the American Society for Quality.

FM Bank promoted Victoria Guidry Castille to branch manager and banking officer. Castille manages the Breaux Bridge Walmart branch and is responsible for coaching team members and daily operations. The Parks native served as a teller and assistant manager for 2.5 years prior to her promotion. She previously worked for Gachassin Law Firm. Castille attended UL Lafayette, majoring in elementary education.

Cliff LaCour was inducted president of the Lafayette Young Lawyers Association. The group, which is a section of the Lafayette Bar Association, is composed of attorneys under 40 or those in practice for five years or less. LYLA members represent about one-fourth of the Lafayette Bar Association's total membership. LaCour, an attorney with the Lafayette-based firm NeunerPate, is a graduate of LSU and Tulane University Law School. In addition to serving as president of LYLA, the Moreauville native is a member of various professional organizations, including the John M. Duhe Jr. American Inn of Court, the Louisiana Association of Defense Counsel, the Federal Bar Association, and the Lafayette and state bar associations. He is also involved in the local community, providing pro bono legal services through the Lafayette Volunteer Lawyers program and assisting victims of domestic abuse through the Lafayette Parish Bar Foundation's Protective Order Panel. He received LVL's Outstanding Attorney Award in 2012.

Lynn A. DeRouen of DeRouen Financial Management in New Iberia received the H.D. Vest Excellence Award, which is presented annually by H.D. Vest Financial Services to advisers who provide superior client services.

LHC Group's long-term acute care hospitals were recognized for their quality tracking initiatives and practices by The Advisory Board Company, a Washington D.C.-based research, technology and consulting firm. The Lafayette-based company's quality tracking program was highlighted by the Advisory Board in a teleconference with health care leaders from across the nation on trends affecting long-term acute care facilities. LHC Group operates nine long-term acute care hospitals.

Right Angle was recognized three times for its marketing and advertising work at the 34th annual Telly Awards. The agency received a Silver Telly for its "Care Sooner. Open Later." television production for Iberia Urgent Care and Bronze awards for its "Wilderness, Weapons, & War" and "Planetarium" television productions created for the Lafayette Science Museum. The Tellys were founded in 1978 to honor local, regional and cable TV commercials. In 2013, there were more than 12,000 entries from all 50 states and five continents. Judging is based not against the competition, but on standards of merit determined by a panel of judges each year.

Dauterive Hospital and Lafayette General Medical Center were named 2013 recipients of the Top Performer on Key Quality Measures by The Joint Commission, the leading accreditor of health care organizations in America. Dauterive received the Top Performer designation for having achieved excellence in performance on its accountability measures for heart attacks, pneumonia and surgical care, and LGMC was recognized for excellent performance in using evidence-based clinical processes in improving care specifically for cases of heart attack, heart failure and pneumonia. Each accountability measure represents an evidence-based practice. Of the 3,343 eligible hospitals in the U.S. submitting accountability measure data for 2012 to The Joint Commission, Dauterive and LGMC (which are not affiliated) were among 1,099 to meet or exceed the Joint Commission target performance rates.

In another recent recognition, LGMC was selected for the 2013 Excellence Award by the Small Business Institute for Excellence in Commerce. Each year, the SBIEC conducts business surveys and industry research to identify companies that have achieved demonstrable success in their local business environment and industry category. They are recognized as having enhanced the commitment and contribution of small businesses through service to their customers and their community. The local hospital also was named a 2013/2014 Consumer Choice Award winner by National Research Corporation. The annual award, announced in the Oct. 21 issue of Modern Healthcare magazine, identifies hospitals across the U.S. that health care consumers choose as having the highest quality and image. This is the ninth-consecutive Consumer Choice Award for LGMC.