Elizabeth J. Champion recently earned the Certified in Healthcare Compliance professional credential. Champion, corporate compliance officer at Our Lady of Lourdes, underwent a vigorous examination through the Healthcare Compliance Certification Board to achieve the CHC designation. Champion has a BS in health information management and is certified as a registered health information administrator through the American Health Information Management Association. She has been employed at Lourdes since 2001 and has served as medical records supervisor, privacy and data security coordinator and currently is a member of the senior executive team.
New educational classes at Lafayette General Medical Center help parents overcome eating, exercise and behavioral difficulties in their children. As part of the Healthy Behaviors, Healthy Child class series, parents can learn how to help their children develop positive behavior patterns for a healthy lifestyle. Judy Robichaux, a pediatric nurse practitioner/director of women's and children's services, will help present this program. All classes are held in Owen Auditorium (across from the cafeteria), at 6 p.m. Dates and class topics are as follows: June 13 ' Eating & Exercising in Teenagers; July 9 ' Eating & Exercising in School-age Children; Aug. 8 ' Eating & Exercising in Infants and Toddlers; Sept. 3 ' Behavior Issues in Teenagers; Oct. 10 ' Behavior Issues in School-age Children; Nov. 28 ' Behavior Issues in Infants & Toddlers. Though the series is free, pre-registration is required by calling 289-7780.
St. Agnes Breast Center's Paula R. Tramel, a registered radiologic technologist and radiology mammographer, was honored by the Acadiana Society of Radiologic Technologists with a Lifetime Membership Award for demonstrating outstanding achievements, dedication and capabilities in the field of radiologic technology. Tramel joined the society in the late 1970s and has held the position of secretary and assisted with the scholarship fund. She has been employed by Our Lady of Lourdes for more than 13 years, seven of those years with St. Agnes Breast Center, where she serves as lead mammographer.
Registered Nurse Amelie Hollier has been selected as a Fellow of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners for her outstanding contributions to health care through nurse practitioner clinical practice, research, education and providing a forum through which to extend and enhance such efforts. Fewer than 150 nurse practitioners in the United States have attained this distinction. Hollier is the nurse practitioner of Our Lady of Lourdes' St. Clare Employee Health Service, a health clinic designed to serve the needs of Lourdes employees and their children at a minimal cost. She has been employed by Lourdes for more than 18 years, nine in her current position.
The community relations staff of Lafayette General Medical Center was recently honored with a Bronze Award from the National Healthcare Marketing Report for a nurse recruitment mailer series. Additionally, the Louisiana Society for Hospital and Public Relations awarded the prestigious Best of Show Jacqueline Leonhard Award for Writing Excellence to LGMC's communications specialist Patrice Doucet. LGMC also won seven Pelicans and a certificate of merit. The Pelican Awards recognize outstanding marketing, advertising and public relations work among hospitals statewide. Lafayette General's marketing and community relations team includes Director of Community Relations Elisabeth Arnold, Doucet, graphic designer Kim Morse and communications specialist Leslie Davis. The staff won Pelican Awards in the following categories: Writing/Advertising ' nurse recruitment mailer series; Events/External Audience ' Debra Waterhouse, speaker; Print Advertising Campaign ' Mother's Day OB campaign; Print Advertising, Black and White ' Lafayette General Imaging ad; Direct Mail ' sweethearts invitation; HR recruitment collateral ' nurse recruitment mailer series; Brochure (less then $2,500) ' Lafayette General Imaging. LGMC also received a certificate of merit for the 'i bid' online auction in-house campaign.
Lafayette General Medical Center is now offering the innovative CyberKnife Robotic Radiosurgery System in its new CyberKnife Center. This is the second CyberKnife in the state, and one of only about 85 in the country. With this technology, an image-guided, computer-controlled robot moves in almost any dirction to target intense beams of radiation at tumors previously considered inoperable. The system is so precise because it uses advanced software and x-ray cameras to continuously track and target the tumor's position. Though the treatment is called radiosurgery, there is no pain, no anesthesia and no recovery time, and it is complete in one to five days ' versus other radiation therapy systems that can take 30 to 45 days.
As of last week, Dr. Ghyass Rizk, a Lafayette endocrinologist, was Louisiana's leading Tour de Cure fund raiser, having already brought in more than $27,000 in sponsorships and pledges for the American Diabetes Association. Tour de Cure is ADA's annual bicycling event that raises money for research for a cure of diabetes, the nation's fastest growing disease. On Sunday, Rizk joined his family and about 200 cyclists from Louisiana and southern Mississippi on a 100-mile bike ride, his sixth Tour de Cure ride. The ride began and ended in St. Francisville and offered riders the option to bike routes that are 26, 55 or 100 miles long. Rizk is a board certified endocrinologist, specializing in treating patients with diabetes and other endocrine system disorders. Last year he raised $14,250 for the ADA and was the nation's 10th highest Tour de Cure fund raiser. Funds he raises support local children who attend Camp Victory, ADA's week-long camp for children with diabetes, and other programs.
Saint Mary's Imaging Center, Saint Agnes Breast Center, and Acadiana Imaging Center have merged and will operate under the auspices of Our Lady of Lourdes. Lourdes has retained the services of COL, a local management company, to manage the operations at the four locations where the imaging centers operate. In addition to offering services from Saint Mary's Imaging Center and Saint Agnes Breast Center on Saint Landry Street, Lourdes will offer services at 2311 Kaliste Saloom and 501 W. St. Mary Blvd.
Registered Nurse Melissa Montgomery Magie has been named director of the emergency department at Our Lady of Lourdes. Magie has a solid background in clinical nursing and nursing management to her new position and has worked as a trauma program manager. Additionally, she has medicine/surgery, emergency department and ICU experience. Magie is pursuing her master's degree in nursing from the University of South Alabama.
Dr. Vikram "Vik" Parmar has opened an orthopedic practice on the campus of Our Lady of Lourdes in the St. Mary Medical Office Building, located at 601 W. St. Mary Blvd., Ste. 510. Parmar specializes in orthopedic spine surgery and trauma. He is board certified from the American Board of Orthopedic Surgery and is a Fellow in Orthopedic Spine Surgery. Parmar will treat patients on Fridays in his new office.
Our Lady of Lourdes now offers the highest powered diagnosis equipment in Acadiana. The GE Infinia Hawkeye, a revolutionary combined nuclear medicine/computed tomography system, delivers unprecedented image quality and provides diagnostic confidence to physicians with a proven impact on patient management. Infinia Hawkeye's integrated CT solution harnesses the power of GE's exclusive Hawkeye single photo emission computed tomography (SPECT)/CT imaging that allows physicians at Lourdes to more precisely diagnose and locate disease. Recent clinical studies have shown that the use of the GE Hawkeye system significantly improved patient management across a range of common pathologies, including heart disease, prostate cancer and thyroid cancer.