Ochsner Lafayette General

12/19/2025

Ochsner Cancer Center of Acadiana at Ochsner Lafayette General Medical Center clinics and infusion centers recently hosted the Jingle Jangle Food Drive to give back to our community during the holiday season. 🎄

Team members came together to donate nonperishable food items and holiday treats to support local families in need. The initiative was led by Shantell Dugas, NP, and focused on partnering with Lafayette Elementary to help ensure children had access to food during the holiday break.

We are grateful to Principal Colleen Comeaux and the Lafayette Elementary team for their warm welcome and support in bringing this vision to life as we continue to expand our impact across Acadiana. ❤️🎁

12/18/2025

December is ushering in cooler weather across Acadiana. 🥶

CJ Tosino, DO, a sports medicine physician at Ochsner Lafayette General Andrews Orthopedics & Sports Medicine Institute, shares tips to help you stay active.

Learn more about Dr. Tosino: https://www.ochsner.org/doctors/christopher-tosino-do/

12/17/2025

As we reflect on 2025, we celebrate the impact of the Makin’ Groceries Mobile Market at Ochsner University Hospital & Clinics in collaboration with Second Harvest Food Bank. 🥕🚚

By bringing fresh produce and pantry staples directly to neighborhoods across Acadiana, this once-a-month market helped remove barriers to nutritious food access for families who need it most.

The mobile market served communities throughout Acadia, Evangeline, Iberia, Jeff Davis, Lafayette, St. Landry, St. Martin, St. Mary and Vermilion parishes, reaching families in cities and neighborhoods across Acadiana.

None of this would have been possible without our incredible volunteers. More than 300 hours were donated by our team members. Your time, compassion and dedication are the heart of this market. 💙

Learn more about how the Makin’ Groceries Mobile Market is making a difference: https://no-hunger.org/mobilemarket/

12/16/2025

The holiday season is about spending time together, but family gatherings can sometimes feel overwhelming. 🎄

We’ve rounded up nine helpful tips to help you navigate time with your in-laws, set healthy boundaries and protect your well-being.

Read the full article for practical strategies to help you enjoy a calmer, more peaceful holiday season. ✨

Whether we like our in-laws or not, feeling confined with them can lead us to feel on-edge. Here are some helpful tips to get you through the holidays,

12/12/2025

Join us in welcoming Lani Landry, PA, to Ochsner Health Center - Rue Louis XIV in Lafayette! 🎉

Lani practices family medicine, providing compassionate care for adults and children. A proud Acadiana native, she is committed to long-term patient relationships, preventive care, chronic disease management and supporting overall wellness.

She earned her bachelor’s degree from LSU in Baton Rouge and graduated valedictorian with her Master of Physician Assistant Studies from LSU Health Sciences Center in Shreveport. Lani stays up to date in her field as a member of the Louisiana Academy of Physician Assistants. 🎓

Outside the clinic, she enjoys traveling, staying active and spending time with family and friends.
We’re thrilled to have her caring for the Lafayette community! 💙

Learn more about Lani: https://www.ochsner.org/doctors/lani-landry-pa

12/11/2025

Please join us in welcoming Marae L. Schexnayder, DO, to Southside Family Health in Lafayette! 🎉

A Scott, Louisiana native, Dr. Schexnayder is a board-certified internal medicine physician who provides comprehensive primary care with a focus on preventive health, personalized screenings and patient-centered care. 🩺 She also specializes in osteopathic manipulative medicine to help treat acute and chronic pain.

Dr. Schexnayder earned her Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine from the Arkansas College of Osteopathic Medicine and completed her internal medicine residency at Ochsner Medical Center in New Orleans. She is passionate about building strong relationships with her patients and helping them achieve their best health.

Outside of work, she enjoys fishing on the Atchafalaya River, gardening, pickleball and spending time with her family. 🐟🌿🎾

Learn more about Dr. Schexnayder: https://www.ochsner.org/doctors/marae-l-schexnayder-do/

12/10/2025

Meet Lori Cox, NP, at Ochsner Acadia General Health Center - Crowley!

Lori is a family medicine nurse practitioner who provides care for adults and children, supporting her patients’ health and wellness with a compassionate, team-based approach. Her special interests include diabetes care and women’s health. 🩺

Lori proudly served in the United States Navy, where she met her husband. She is dedicated to caring for families in the Crowley community and helping patients stay healthy at every stage of life. 💙

Learn more about Lori or schedule an appointment. Same-day appointments are available: https://www.ochsner.org/doctors/lori-cox/

12/09/2025

Looking to build strength smarter, not harder? 🧠

Tyler Perrin-Bellelo, MD, FACP, D-ABOM, explains the difference between compound and isolation exercises, how to balance them and why both are important for safe, effective training.

🔗 Learn more about Dr. Perrin-Bellelo: https://ow.ly/w2ph50XGqFu

https://ow.ly/pBJT50XGqEJ

Learn the difference between compound and isolation exercises, how to balance them and how to apply progressive overload to build strength, improve function and avoid injury.

12/08/2025

We were honored to welcome more than 100 guests to Ochsner Lafayette General Medical Center on Saturday, Dec. 6, for our annual Tree of Life Ceremony, hosted in partnership with LOPA - Louisiana Organ Procurement Agency.

Families placed ornaments on our beautifully decorated trees as we remembered and celebrated loved ones who gave the gift of life through organ donation. 💙 A special musical performance by CYT Lafayette added a heartfelt touch to the ceremony.

During the ceremony, CEO Al Patin shared, “Through organ donation, your loved ones gave hope, healing and new life. Their legacy continues in the most extraordinary way.”

Thank you to LOPA and to each donor family for allowing us to walk alongside you in remembrance and gratitude. It was an honor to share this moment with you. May your loved ones be remembered at Christmas and always. 🕯️

Learn more about LOPA: https://www.lopa.org/

12/05/2025

Representatives from Ochsner Lafayette General joined Al Patin, CEO of Ochsner Lafayette General Medical Center and 2025 chair of One Acadiana, at the organization’s sold-out Regional Celebration on Dec. 3. 🎉

With Ochsner Lafayette General serving as the presenting sponsor, the event brought together more than 400 community leaders from across the nine-parish Acadiana region to commemorate a decade of dedication, economic development and business momentum. 📈

Over the past year, Patin worked with the One Acadiana leadership team and key stakeholders to expand workforce and economic development opportunities across Acadiana, including impactful initiatives like ConnectED.

Together, we are advancing economic opportunity and shaping the future of Acadiana!

Learn more about One Acadiana: https://www.oneacadiana.org/

12/04/2025

Big news for healthcare in Acadiana! 🎉 LSU Health Shreveport will launch Louisiana’s first hybrid Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program in Lafayette, and Ochsner Lafayette General is helping bring this new program to our region.

This new program, supported by the Louisiana Department of Health’s HERO Fund and Rehab Essentials, will make physical therapy education easier to access and help meet the growing need for skilled therapists in Louisiana. Students will complete online coursework and train in person at local clinical sites, including Ochsner Lafayette General hospitals and clinics.

“Ochsner Lafayette General is proud to support this program and the students who will learn and train here in Acadiana,” said Patrick Gandy, CEO. “Partnering with LSU Health Shreveport expands opportunity for physical therapy education and helps support our hospitals, clinics and communities in growing the skilled therapists they need.”

The first class begins in May 2026, helping strengthen patient care and prepare the next generation of physical therapists for Acadiana and beyond. 💙

Acadiana, we’re coming your way! 💜
Our LSU Health Shreveport School of Health Professions and Sciences has officially received full accreditation to launch a Hybrid Doctor of Physical Therapy Program in Lafayette.

In partnership with Ochsner Lafayette General, the Louisiana Department of Health and Rehab Essentials: Online Post-Professional DPT & OTD Programs, this expansion will increase access to high-quality PT education while helping strengthen the healthcare workforce across South Louisiana.

Read more in the comments about how we're Winning For Louisiana 💛

12/03/2025

Seventeen-year-old Kallen L. was rushed to Ochsner Lafayette General Medical Center’s Level II Trauma Center after a serious car accident on July 8, 2023 left her with fractured ribs, a bruised lung and multiple broken bones. As her oxygen levels dropped, her condition declined quickly.

Thanks to the swift, expert care of the trauma team led by Damian DeFrancesch, MD, and trauma surgeon Willard Mosier, MD, Kallen’s life was saved.

Today, Kallen is fully recovered and studying nursing at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, inspired by the care she received and aspiring to work in intensive care. 💙

Join us in celebrating her strength and the skilled clinicians who made this outcome possible.

Learn more about Kallen’s story: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vIK85fepA0&t=1s