1. health and fitness

The Clinic
Quarterly News from
Lafayette Community
Health Care Clinic
BEAT
Fall 2014
Join LCHCC for the
17th Annual Silver Bell Soirée!
Board of
Directors:
Karen Hardy,
President
Carolyn Huval,
Treasurer
Francis E.
Boustany, DDS,
Secretary
F. Jay Culotta, Jr.,
MD, Past President
Jennifer Block, APRN
Nick Gachassin, III,
JD
Carla Gala, JD
Tony Gordon
Deborah
Johnson, MD
Stephanie LeBlanc
Craig Ortego
Chris Rader
Bently Senegal, CPA
Susan Slocum
Associate
Committee:
Tim Anderson
William Bailey
Danielle Cromwell
Donna Delahoussaye
Phena Guidry
Melanie Martin
Mary Nain
Mary Neiheisel, EdD
Dwight “Bo” Ramsay
Jerry Ramsay
Shelia Robson
A letter from President Karen Hardy:
It’s that time of year again! The cold
fronts are moving in; the Halloween
decorations have come and gone. The
Christmas decorations are being set out,
and the holiday galas will soon be in full
swing. In the midst of our holiday shopping,
event planning, and football watching it’s
important to take a moment to stop and
reflect.
When I see December fast approaching
I know it’s time for me to sit and count my
blessings. I take this time to remind myself
why I love being a citizen of Lafayette. Our
culture, our generosity, and our sense of
community are just three things that
immediately come to mind. I unfailingly see
those aspects of our city alive and hard at
work in the Lafayette Community Health Care Clinic.
It’s easy to forget these things in the hustle of everyday life, but the chill in the air reminds me: it’s
that time of year again. It’s time to remind people of the good the Clinic does day in and day out. It’s
time to tell people how humbling it is to hear a patient at LCHCC say, “This Clinic saved my life. I thank
God for this Clinic.” It’s time to ask the generous members of our community to help us celebrate the
Clinic’s volunteers and patients. It’s time for the Silver Bell Soirée!
Over 20 years ago, Dr. Terry Cromwell saw a need in the community of Lafayette, and that
compassion created the Lafayette Community Health Care Clinic. To date, the Clinic has provided and
coordinated medical, dental, and pharmaceutical services at a value of more than $25.2 million at no
cost to our working uninsured patients. The Silver Bell Soirée is a crucial fundraiser for the Clinic, but
the point— the heart, of the event is to tell people our story—the story of the patients we serve, the
medical professionals that volunteer their time, and the community members that have supported us
for over two decades.
So come celebrate with us on December 4th! The Soirée is a holiday cocktail extravaganza with live
entertainment, a silent auction, and plenty of good food and good people. The event begins at 6:30 pm
at the Palmetto Club and will honor Sister Betty Lyons, OSF, this year’s l’Abeille d’Or (Golden Bee)
Award recipient.
I hope to see you there and I hope your holidays are blessed!
Sincerely,
Karen Hardy
President, LCHCC Board of Directors
For more information on tickets and
sponsorship, call LCHCC’s Marketing and
Development Coordinator, Kate Longoria, at
337-593-9208 ext. 222.
Page 2
Announcing LCHCC’s New Health and Fitness Program for Patients: C.H.A.M.P.
LCHCC Volunteer Coordinator, Brittany Bennett, is heading up the Clinic’s exciting new CHAMP program. CHAMP,
which stands for Community Health Awareness through Membership & Persistence, has been made possible through a collaborative partnership with the Junior League of Lafayette.
All participants are women who are struggling with ailments
such as diabetes, asthma, high blood pressure, or obesity. Each
woman enrolled in the program will be given a free one year
membership to Planet Fitness, which has generously provided
the Clinic with a discount for the memberships. The ladies will
also receive work out clothes, including proper work out shoes.
The goal of the program is to encourage and instruct participants
on how to lead a healthier lifestyle and help get their chronic
conditions under control.
“The idea for CHAMP really came from seeing a need among our patients,” notes Ms. Bennett. “We wanted to design a
program that would benefit the participants in multiple ways. With CHAMP, the ladies will be given the tools to improve
their health outside the Clinic walls. When you have a chronic condition like diabetes or hypertension, it’s not something
you deal with in an hour with a doctor’s appointment. You live with it all day, everyday, so it’s wonderful to have an opportunity to impact the daily lives of the women in the program. A lot of the participants have also said they joined because
they have children. They want to set a good example for their kids, and to teach their children how to lead a healthy life.”
The CHAMP program includes a point system, which will help encourage the participants to pursue other fitness and
nutrition opportunities. Participants can earn points each time they visit the gym, attend a Planet
Fitness class, utilize the services of a Planet Fitness trainer (which is free for members), attend a
community health event or an LCHCC Nutrition Counseling Session.
“One of the main goals of the program is to make health and fitness financially feasible for the
participants,” added Ms. Bennett. “Normally these ladies can’t afford a monthly gym membership or
a shopping trip to Academy for gym clothes. They have bills to pay and groceries to buy. Some of
the ladies expressed concern that they wouldn’t be able to get to the Planet Fitness location, so
we’ve worked travel money into the program budget. Some ladies will get gas money, for others
we’ll add money to their bus card. We want to make CHAMP something they look forward to, not
another burden.”
The ladies will update Brittany and their Junior League mentor monthly on their progress, and
the participant with the most points will be given a small prize to acknowledge her progress. To find
out more about the CHAMP program, contact Brittany Bennett 337-593-9208 ext. 230.
Announcements
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LCHCC receives new grants: The Clinic was
awarded a $5,025 grant from Junior League of Lafayette
(to fund the CHAMP Program), and a $2,500 grant
from the Moody Foundation. Thank you to both
organizations for supporting our mission!
United Way of Acadiana and University of
Louisiana at Lafayette’s Soul Camp students
stopped by the Clinic for a day of service. The newly
accepted ULL students spent the afternoon cleaning up
the grounds, pulling weeds, and sweeping up leaves—
and we are so grateful!


LCHCC Participated in the 2nd Annual Stop
the Violence Event on October 18. Clinic staff
was happy to attend this event to spread awareness, and help stop violence in the community.
Donate to the Silver Bell Soirée silent
auction! We are currently accepting items for this
year’s silent auction. Great items include: gift cards
to local businesses, original art work, tickets to
sporting events, etc. If you’re interested in
donating, contact Kate Longoria at 337-593-9208
ext. 222 or [email protected]
Page 3
Services Provided
Our volunteers are the best! Thank you for helping us provide the
highest quality healthcare to our working uninsured neighbors in Lafayette Parish.
From January to August 2014, the Lafayette Community Health Care Clinic held 63 Clinic Nights and provided:
Medical Services with a total
value of $221,404
 798 medical exams
 96 GYN exams
 11 nutritional consultations
 1,041 lab texts and X-rays by
referral
 100 breast cancer screenings
 176 consulting specialist
referral visits
Dental Services with a
total value of $113,701
 356 dental visits
Pharmaceutical Services with a
total value of $1,739,540
through the Community
Pharmacy
 11,718 prescriptions
dispensed
Our patients say:
“A friend recommended the pharmacy to me. I am a hard worker, but I had two knee replacements and suddenly I
had to ask for help. I am grateful. I am overwhelmed with thanksgiving because there are people in this world who do
help others. This place is a blessing from God!”
-June 18, 2014
“I came in on a Friday at 11:58 am to fill my newly acquired insulin prescription and even though the pharmacy was
closing at noon, the pharmacist stayed late to fill my prescriptions for me. I had been without my insulin since I fled
domestic violence and entered the Faith House.”
-June 6, 2014
“My experience at LCHCC has been great! They’re helping with my asthma and high blood pressure. I come to the
Clinic because of my finances. It’s a place where you can see a doctor without insurance and it’s not an emergency room
problem. The doctors always take enough time with me during my appointment and they always go the extra mile!”
-September 16, 2014
LCHCC Staff:
Laurie Richard, Director of Finance
Judith Perez, RN, Director of Clinical Services
Nanette Angelle, Data Specialist PT
Brittany Bennett, Volunteer Coordinator
Zelma Broussard, LPN, Clinic Night Nurse, PT
Sonya Jones, Volunteer Scheduler, PT
Kate Longoria, Marketing &
Development Coordinator
Paige Poirier, Dental Assistant, PT
Jeffery Bolotte, RPh, Our Lady of Lourdes Loaned
Pharmacy Manager
Darlene Lovas RN, Our Lady of Lourdes Loaned Nurse, PT
LaKisha McKinney, CPhT, Our Lady of Lourdes Loaned Tech
Have you seen us
In the News?
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99.9 KTDY’s website published
LCHCC’s new Screening Video,
August 25
KATC published story on naming of
Clinic’s reception area, honoring
Patrick and Elizabeth Little, July 1
KATC, Face Magazine, The Acadiana
Gazette, and The Daily Advertiser
published stories on naming of Clinic’s
medical laboratory after the late
Harold C. Abdalla, June 23
Louisiana Medical News published
color ad for the Silver Bell Soirée in
their October issue
The Daily Advertiser mentioned
LCHCC as a recipient of a Junior
League of Lafayette grant, September
11
Page 4
LCHCC Brings Back Healthy Eating Classes
LCHCC is excited to announce the return of
monthly Nutrition Counseling! The Clinic will now
offer a Healthy Eating Class on the first Thursday of
every month. The classes are free for Clinic patients
and will teach participants how to read food labels,
what to look for when shopping, how to identify
good food choices, understand serving sizes, and
plan meals. Nutritionist Alicia Rourk, RD is heading
up the program and recommends the classes for
patients with diabetes or high blood pressure, patients wanting to lose weight, or
patients that are interested in improving their dietary health and knowledge.
THANK YOU to our
2014 Silver Bell Soirée Sponsors
This is our working list of sponsors, and it will continue to
grow through November.
If you want to be a sponsor, it’s not too late! Contact Kate
Longoria | 337-593-9208 ext. 222
Silver Star Sponsors:
Gachassin Law Firm
Dr. Deborah Johnson & Dr. Lee Bairnsfather
Moss Motors
PHI
Diamond Snowflake Sponsors:
Acadiana Computer Systems
Acadiana Retina Consultants
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana
Doctor’s Lab
Haynie Family Foundation
Lafayette General Health
Lafayette Surgical Specialty Hospital
LAMMICO
LHC Group
Bronze Ornament Sponsors:
Acadiana Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram
Dr. Francis Boustany
Capital One Bank
Marine Industrial Fabrication
Dr. Philip Gachassin
Gilsbar, LLC
Horne, LLP
Industrial Hand and Rehab Center
Martin & Castille Funeral Homes
Oncologics
Preferred Anatomic Pathology Services
Page 5
United Way and ULL Team Up
for Soul Camp:
Thank you to United Way of Acadiana
and ULL students
for sprucing up the Clinic grounds!
LCHCC Welcomes New Students for the
Fall Semester!
The Clinic has long
been an educational
resource in the
Lafayette community,
and every fall brings a
new batch of eager-tolearn young minds. This
semester, LCHCC
welcomed 2 new work
study students from University of Louisiana at Lafayette,
Raven Taylor and Nyeshia Harris, and an intern Jackie
Phounsavath (pictured above on the right).
“I enjoy working here,” says Ms. Taylor, a Health
Services Administration major. “I get to do a lot of hands
on work that I will potentially do in my future career. I
definitely enjoy interacting with the patients on screening
days. Working here has shown me that the people in the
Lafayette community work closely together— from the
nurses and doctors that volunteer to the organizations
and businesses that provide dinner for the volunteers. It
warms my heart to know that they all care about the
Clinic patients.”
The students are also exposed to the business side of
a non-profit organization. “I think we’ve given Jackie the
non-profit bug,” notes Marketing and Development
Coordinator Kate Longoria. “She secured an in-kind
donation for the Clinic from her boss at her second job.
She’s so impressive. She always has a good attitude and is
willing to go the extra mile for the Clinic. I can see that
the Clinic’s mission really inspires the students. They see
the volunteers making a difference in the lives of our
patients and, of course, they want to be a part of that. It’s
a great feeling.”
Calling all Healthcare Professionals!!!
The Clinic is always in need of volunteer physicians, dentists, nurses,
nurse practitioners, pharmacists and other healthcare professionals!
Volunteer and see how the Clinic is making a positive change in the lives of our neighbors!
We also need volunteers to help with the information desk, building maintenance and repairs and more.
Help us BUILD ONE HEALTHY
COMMUNITY.
To volunteer, call 593-9208 ext. 230
and speak with Brittany Bennett
Lafayette Community Health Care Clinic
1317 Jefferson Street
Lafayette, LA 70501
Phone: 337.593.9208
Non Profit Org.
U. S. Postage
PAID
Lafayette, LA
Permit No. 373
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Mission Statement:
The Lafayette Community Health Care Clinic is a non-profit
organization that provides quality outpatient health care for the eligible
working uninsured and develops and provides programs to address
community health care needs through collaborative partnerships.