In a race against time, 17-year-old Lauren is teetering on the verge of needing dialysis. She is in need of a living kidney donor as part of her battle with dense deposit disease, an ultra-rare autoimmune disease that is impacting her kidneys. Starting her senior year of high school in Gonzales, Lauren hopes to find…
Lorenzo Tomas Alonzo, RN, works at Our Lady of the Lake Assumption as an ER nurse. Alonzo has been with our health system since January 2016. Alonzo was born in Guatemala, and her family moved to the United States when she was 7. A fun fact about Alonzo is that her family has Mayan…
Laura Daigle, RN, is a nurse in Labor and Delivery at Our Lady of Lourdes Women’s and Children’s Hospital. Daigle joined our ministry before she graduated from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in 2016 by participating in the Accelerated Clinical Experience program that allows nursing students to shadow nurses before they graduate. Upon graduating…
Arturo Blanco, MD, is a board-certified family physician who has been a part of our ministry for more than 13 years. Dr. Blanco serves at the family medicine clinic in Clinton. Dr. Blanco says, “As a small child I had the desire to be a physician. It has always been what I wanted to do…
The return to the school routine has kids’ immune systems fighting off RSV, flu and COVID-19. Kali Broussard, MD, pediatrician and pediatric infectious diseases specialist with Our Lady of Lourdes Children’s Health, shares how parents can make the best decisions for their children’s health. Recognizing Symptoms and When to Test Dr. Broussard explains that COVID-19…
People might know Michelle Nelson, NP, as the lead nurse practitioner with the Surgeons Group of Baton Rouge at Our Lady of the Lake Health. Or they might know her as the person who helps train LSU medical students through Our Lady of the Lake’s Graduate Medical Education program. Or they know her through her…
The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Our Lady of Lourdes Women’s & Children’s Hospital, Acadiana’s only Level III Surgical NICU, has provided exceptional care since 1983. When a newborn needs round-the-clock specialized care to start life off on the right foot, being close to home — and mom — can make all the difference.…
Anna Maria Medrano, RN, is a night shift nurse in the medical surgery unit at Our Lady of the Angels Hospital. Medrano has been with the ministry for almost three years. “When I was younger my mom was very sick,” Medrano says. “I watched her go through so much, and I wanted to care for…
Gabriel Orellana, RN, works as an intensive care unit (ICU) nurse at Our Lady of Lourdes Heart Hospital. He works in the progressive care unit where his patient assignments can vary from stable telemetry patients to immediate post-op open heart surgery patients. Orellana has been part of our ministry since April 2022. Orellana knew from…
DayDi Fernandez has been with FMOLHS for eight years. Her role as an Epic Application Systems Analyst on the inpatient orders team means that she supports all aspects of inpatient orders in the electronic medical record system, EPIC. Fernandez’s passion for biology and chemistry guided her to a career in the healthcare field. “I…
Linda Vanessa Yaul, MSN, an ICU nurse at St. Dominic Hospital, has been with St. Dominic’s for eight and half years. She serves as a preceptor and charge nurse, training new nurses and ensuring her unit runs smoothly. After earning her associate’s degree in nursing (ADN) from Hinds Community College, Yaul earned her master of…
Maria Cruz, CNA, works as a certified nurse assistant in the telemetry unit at St. Francis Medical Center. Cruz has been a part of the ministry for almost a year. Celebrating Family Traditions Cruz’s favorite family tradition is celebrating Día de Los Muertos. Cruz explains how Día de Los Muertos is the day Mexican families…
Jessica Macias, RN, CMSRN, works at Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center as a Patient Care Services Float Nurse. Macias has been a part of our health system since early 2013. After nursing school, she began her career working on a med-surg unit. “After 4 years on med-surg, I decided to transition to…
Knowing whether you have dense breasts can help you better understand your risk of breast cancer. New rules from the Food and Drug Administration empower women to make informed decisions about breast health by requiring mammography facilities to notify patients about their breast density. Defining Breast Density Breasts contain fibrous tissue for support, glandular tissue…
It was supposed to be a celebratory day. Sadie Soileau, just 9 years old, was riding home from her sister’s graduation at McNeese State University in Lake Charles in 2021. The family lived about an hour and a half away in the small town of Ville Platte. On the car ride home, Sadie and her…
When it’s extremely hot and humid — which, let’s be honest, feels like all the time in south Louisiana — your body’s ability to cool itself is put to the test. You may be outside playing sports or exercising, rushing to make it to class on time, hanging out by the pool or tailgating with…
Let’s face it. Your health needs can happen at the worst times: after hours, on the weekends, when you’re on the road or just generally outside of the normal 9 to 5. Fortunately, our health system is committed to providing high-quality healthcare that is easy to access and convenient to you — wherever you are.…
In the dimly lit halls of the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Our Lady of Lourdes Women’s & Children’s Hospital, the soft hum of machines mingles with the hushed whispers of parents and the efficient sounds of the NICU team. Hope Keller, BSN, RN, serves Acadiana’s tiniest patients at our hospital, a role she’s…