Brooke LeBlanc was only 30 years old when she received her breast cancer diagnosis, despite having no family history of the disease. She was a breastfeeding mom, and her second son was only four months old. She and her family were days away from moving home to Acadiana after living in Colorado for several years.…
Keeping up with a busy schedule is difficult for many of us. For men in high-powered positions or with major business responsibilities, it’s next to impossible. That’s why men’s health needs often fall to the bottom of the to-do list. What’s alarming is that men are twice as likely as women to suffer from chronic…
Mayra Rocha, RN, is a first generation Cuban American, and she’s been working at Our Lady of the Angels Hospital since 2009 when it was known as LSU Bogalusa Medical Center. As a bilingual registered nurse in the hospital’s ER, Rocha is able to help many people. “Having the advantage of speaking Spanish has helped…
Much of the work of parenting involves balance, avoiding extremes one way or another. That good general advice also applies to helping kids establish healthy eating habits. Carmen Alexis Miller, MS, RDN, LDN, outpatient dietitian at Our Lady of Lourdes Women’s & Children’s Hospital in Lafayette, shares about ways to feed our kids well, encouraging…
With strengths in diagnosing and fixing broken things, Johnathan Segovia serves as a maintenance mechanic 3 for St. Francis Medical Center’s downtown campus. “Working in maintenance allows me to use my gifts and talents to keep the hospital running,” he says. “I believe in working for a cause greater than myself.” A member of our…
Caring for others has been a central part of life for Ashley Torres, RN. While she’s early in her nursing career, so far it has been as an Our Lady of the Lake team member. She started as a student nurse in 2015, worked briefly as a nurse tech and has been a full-time RN…
We all slip up every now and then. But falls can be serious business in the workplace—for you and for your place of work, too. According to the U.S. Department of Labor Statistics, 15% of all accidental deaths are due to some sort of slip or fall. Michael Brown, APRN, FNP-C, of St. Francis Medical…
Since starting as a college intern until today working as a senior communications specialist, Camille Amadeo has built her career as a team member within our health system. As part of the internal communications team, Amadeo’s role entails communicating to team members within all five markets across our health system: Our Lady of the Lake…
For a holiday that is supposed to be all about fun, costumes and treats, Halloween can be big concern for parents with food-allergic children. Theron McCormick, MD, a pediatric allergist and immunologist at Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Health, shares trick-or-treat tips for those parents. Over the past 10 years, we’ve seen a significant…
Taking a biology class in high school started a career path toward medicine. “I was amazed at how beautifully we creatures were made and how interesting the human body is,” says Gabriel Zevallos, MD, hospitalist at St. Dominic Hospital. Dr. Zevallos provides acute care for patients admitted to the hospital and joined the St. Dominic’s…
Serving his community as a bilingual certified registered nurse anesthetist is something Rodrigo Lopez, CRNA, loves about being part of the team at Our Lady of the Angels Hospital in Bogalusa. Lopez has been with our ministry since 2014 when the hospital became part of our health system, and he’s been a CRNA since 2007.…
Known as “Paris,” Bennig G. Sevilla has lived in the U.S. since she was 10 after spending her early childhood in La-Seiba, Honduras. Sevilla works in nutritional services at Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center. She’s been with our system for five years. Family Traditions Sevilla says she doesn’t remember much of her Honduran…
The statistics around childhood obesity are stark. One in seven children aged 10-17 in the United States are obese, according to the National Survey of Children’s Health. Unfortunately, the rates of childhood obesity in Louisiana are worse. Katie Queen, MD, pediatrician certified in pediatric obesity medicine and medical director at Our Lady of the Lake…
Employers should consider updating their current pandemic safety policies to include information about monkeypox, including how the virus is spread and its symptoms. What is Monkeypox? Monkeypox is a viral infection that presents with flu-like symptoms, swelling of the lymph nodes, and a rash that includes bumps that are initially filled with clear fluid or pus…
Although her childhood dream was to be an orthodontist, Franchesca “Frankie” Wheeler has found a career helping people as a patient access representative at The Medical Spa by St. Francis Medical Group. Wheeler coordinates all appointments and front desk needs and has been in her role with our ministry since April 2021. Celebrating Her Hispanic Heritage …
Born and raised in Guatemala, Juan Guzman Noguera has been in the U.S. since he started college in 2014. He’s been part of our health ministry as a performance improvement engineer for nearly three years. Honoring His Hispanic Heritage Guzman Noguera celebrates his culture and heritage through cooking and sharing with other friends of all…
In August 2022, Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center’s Trauma Center was upgraded from a Level II adult trauma center to Level I by the American College of Surgeons, making it the first and only trauma center in the Capital Region and one of only three in Louisiana to receive the prestigious distinction.…
Since she was a student shadowing nurses on the cardiac unit in 2001, Stephanie Velez, RN, has been an important part of Our Lady of Lourdes family. Currently a bedside nurse for orthopedics and neurology, Velez also occasionally steps in as a charge nurse. During her 21 years, she has helped wherever needed including working…