A New Business Model

For the second year in a row, The NeuroMedical Center partnered with Our Lady of the Lake Hospital and Our Lady of the Lake College on a joint neuroscience symposium geared towards RNs, therapists, social workers, and other allied healthcare workers to obtain continuing education credits. This year since the topic of focus was neuro-oncology, Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center proudly joined the group as a sponsor. Attendees were able to earn 6.75 continuing education credits.

The NeuroMedical Center’s Dr. Jon Olson, Louisiana’s renowned neuro-oncologist, was a key component in organizing the event. Dr. Olson started the event by giving the group of 111 from Louisiana and Mississippi an overview on brain tumors and spoke later in the day on brain tumor treatments and the advances in chemotherapy.

Dr. Dwayne Anderson, a neuroradiologist from Our Lady of the Lake, spoke on brain tumor identification and diagnosis while Dr. Renee Levine, a radiation oncologist with Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center, spoke on radiation therapy for brain tumors.

Before attendees broke for lunch they enjoyed a panel discussion concerning brain tumor patients and quality of life issues. The panel of five consisted of: Dr. Martin Langston, a physical medicine and rehabilitation/pain medicine physician with The NeuroMedical Center; Paul Dammers, Ph.D., M.P., a neuropsychologist with The NeuroMedical Center; Dr. Jon Olson; Esther Sachse, a Social Worker and Director of Programs with Cancer Services; and Scott Courtright, a brain cancer survivor.

The crowd was brought to tears as they listened to the remarkable story of Scott Courtright a 10 year brain tumor survivor. Scott will tell anyone who asks that cancer picked the wrong person and he does whatever he can to educate the community on brain cancer and the wonderful resources Baton Rouge has to offer brain cancer patients.

Dr. Kelly Scrantz, a neurosurgeon with The NeuroMedical Center, spoke at the end of the day on the different surgical treatments for brain tumors. He and Dr. Levine finished the day with a joint presentation on radiosurgery for brain tumors. All attendees enjoyed viewing the surgical films Dr. Scrantz showed from two of his past brain tumor cases.

Nowhere else in Louisiana is there an event like this focused on the neurosciences. We are blessed to have so many renowned neuroscience physicians in Baton Rouge. After the event some of the following comments were made by attendees:

• “I have never gone to a nursing conference and learned so much”
• “This is the best conference I have ever attended.”
• “WOW, we do all of this here, the best thing was that the speakers were from here…and we do all that here”!
• “This was a very thorough, well planned conference.”

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