Geaux Hero Not Slowing Down for Cancer
Geaux Hero Keitra Beach faces breast cancer with courage, continuing her nonprofit work and nursing goals while inspiring others at Our Lady of the Lake.
LSU Gymnast Finds Balance Again After Concussion
After months of lingering concussion symptoms, LSU gymnast Kathryn Weilbacher finds her way back through vestibular therapy and expert care.
Shaping the Future of Blood Cancer Care at Our Lady of the Lake
Blood cancers are among the most complex conditions to diagnose and treat. Leukemia, lymphoma and multiple myeloma each behave differently, and many have dozens of subtypes. For patients, that complexity can feel overwhelming. At FMOL Health | Our Lady of the Lake Cancer Institute, the blood cancer team has built a program designed to simplify…
Finding Hope After Stage 4: Kelly’s Lung Cancer Journey
When Kelly Kelly thinks back to early 2024, she remembers feeling unusually tired and disconnected. She kept pushing through her days, working at a surgical practice, helping care for her aging mom and settling into life with her new husband. But something felt off. Her family noticed changes too. She struggled to finish her sentences.…
Growing the Next Generation of Physicians at FMOL Health
Across FMOL Health, graduate medical education (GME) is more than a training pathway. It is a long-term investment in strengthening care for the communities we serve. Through three GME programs at FMOL Health | Our Lady of the Lake, FMOL Health | St. Francis and FMOL Health | Our Lady of the Angels Hospital, residents…
A New Lease on Life: Larry’s Journey Through Esophageal Cancer Surgery
At 80 years old, Larry Boudreaux thought he had his health figured out. So when he began feeling unusually tired, the Thibodaux native assumed it was related to his diabetes. But within weeks, he started having trouble swallowing, the first sign that something more serious might be going on. “I went to an ENT because…
Celebrating Nurse Practitioners: Leaders in Compassionate, Expert Care
In honor of Nurse Practitioners Week, we celebrate the dedication, leadership and the differences these team members make every day in helping us provide exceptional care. Nurse practitioners play a vital role in delivering compassionate, high-quality care to our patients and communities. Their advanced clinical expertise, combined with a patient-centered approach, allows them to diagnose,…
Survive. Don’t Drive. How Calling 911 Could Save Your Life
When you’re having chest pain or think you might be having a heart attack, your first instinct may be to get to the hospital as fast as possible. But that’s exactly the moment when you should NOT get behind the wheel. Calling 911 can make the difference between life and death. According to Federico De…
5,000 and Counting: Dr. Daryl Marx Reflects on Robotic Surgery Milestone
On an early morning in September, Daryl Marx, MD, prepared to walk into the operating room at Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center as he has done for years, getting ready to begin another surgery. But this morning was different. Balloons, congratulatory hugs from colleagues and even a gold crown awaited him to…
A Silver Milestone: Our Lady of the Lake’s ECMO Program Receives Prestigious Recognition
Only 18 months after launching, Our Lady of the Lake’s ECMO program has touched lives across the community, delivering lifesaving support and advanced care when families have needed it most. It also has already achieved a remarkable milestone: the Silver Path to Excellence Award from the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO). This recognition represents the…
IntelliSep Marks Another Year of Progress Across Our Lady of the Lake and the Health System
This year marks two major milestones in the fight against sepsis: the two-year anniversary of IntelliSep at Our Lady of the Lake in Baton Rouge and the one-year anniversary of its adoption across other hospitals in the health system. Across both timelines, the impact has been substantial: improving survival rates, shortening hospital stays and streamlining…
‘Like My Chest Exploded’: Cassie’s Story of Surviving an Aortic Dissection
It was supposed to be an ordinary summer day in Vacherie. Cassie Falgoust, 55, was outside doing yard work while her husband mowed nearby. She started weed eating when she was hit with a sudden pain. “I felt this enormous pop in my chest,” Cassie recalls. “It was like there was a giant hole in…
Advancing Innovation and Clinical Excellence: HF’s Story of Vibrio, Sepsis and Survival
Sometimes, how we healthcare is by changing the game and redefining what’s possible. For more than 36 years, Herman “HF” Middleton and his wife, Regina, have shared life side by side. They married in 1989, the same year Regina began her career as a nurse at Our Lady of the Lake. Over the decades,…
All Things, Great Love: Jason Survives Heart Attack on ‘a Pulse and a Prayer’
Sometimes, how we healthcare is the strength of a community that never stops caring. On an ordinary Saturday evening, Jason Moore walked into work at Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, just like he had countless times before. As a security guard assigned to the night shift, Jason took pride in keeping the…
Transforming Emergency Care: Our Lady of the Lake Launches Emergency Department Renovation
Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center is taking a generational step forward in emergency care with a more than $55 million renovation of its emergency department. The multi-phase project will expand capacity, integrate advanced technology and improve both patient flow and the caregiver experience. Construction is set to begin in fall 2025 and…
Patient’s Battle with COVID Highlights Louisiana’s Top Respiratory Care Center
In August 2021, Dillon Major was doing everything he could to stay out of the hospital. He had gone four years without even getting so much as a cold. But then COVID struck, and he knew this time was different. “With COVID, I just kept getting worse. I couldn’t even walk up and down the…
A Simple Test, a Life Saved: How IntelliSep Is Changing Emergency Care
Kristen Degelman thought she just had the flu. She and her daughter had gone on vacation, and when they came home, both tested positive. But after five days on medication, her daughter felt fine. Kristen didn’t. A nurse practitioner in the emergency department at St. Dominic, Kristen knew what sepsis looked like — or at…
Precision and Peace of Mind: How Robotic Surgery Helped One Man Beat Throat Cancer
John was sitting in his deer stand in Mississippi when he first noticed a small lump beneath his jawline. At 69 years old and a practicing pharmacist with more than four decades of experience, he assumed it was nothing serious, likely just a lymph node still reacting to a recent respiratory virus. “I had just…