Category Archives: Ascension

By Shereen Siewert

All vendors entering Ascension facilities will be required to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 by Nov. 12, according to a company email issued Thursday.

Ascension previously announced that COVID-19 vaccinations would be required of all staff and for anyone working in their facility. The email explains that the requirement does extend to all vendors entering Ascension facilities.

We rely on thousands of individuals working in our facilities every day to support our caregivers as they deliver patient care and keep our facilities running effectively, the email reads. Ascension conducted a thorough moral and ethical analysis as part of the decision-making process. This decision is rooted in our Mission commitment to leading with quality and safety. As a healthcare provider and as a Catholic ministry, ensuring we have a culture of safety for our associates, patients and communities is foundational to our work.

The requirement applies to vendor representatives entering any Ascension facilities, including all sites of care and all operating or business locations such as office or administrative buildings.

In instances where a vendor representative cannot be vaccinated for medical or any other reasons, the vendor organization should identify a substitute vendor representative to serve in their place or explore options to deliver support virtually, the organization advised.

Ascension will not review, process or approve any exemptions to this requirement for our vendors, the notice reads.

Vaccination documentation will be verified, officials said.

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Ascension will require vendors to be vaccinated - wausaupilotandreview.com

Some of the Baton Rouge areas top football teams have had multiple chances to display their skills. That is why fourth-ranked Ascension Catholic of Class 1A remains a bit of an enigma.

The Bulldogs (1-0) have only played one game while weathering many of the complications that are so 2020-2021 COVID-19 and Hurricane Ida.

But a 30-8 road victory over Class 3A Archbishop Hannan on Thursday provided a glimpse of the Donaldsonville-based team's ability.

All we can do is deal with the situation, Ascension Catholic coach Chris Schexnayder said. Were not quite where we want to be, but were working to get there. The school quarantined for 10 days, and we returned on August 18. Six days later, we had the jamboree.

We didnt have power at the school for over a week after the hurricane. We had a couple of players evacuated, so we couldnt get practice time in after the power came back on.

The offseason and the preseason were of extreme importance for Schexnayder, a first-year head coach and previously the defensive coordinator. The defense remained the same, but the offense transitioned from a Wing-T to a spread.

The team worked on the transition a couple of days per week over the summer. That work paid off in last weeks win.

Ascension Catholic racked up 300 yards of total offense, including 161 yards rushing in the victory over Hannan.

It was a real gutsy performance because we werent in shape after not playing for two weeks, Schexnayder said. Seven different guys touched the ball on offense and defensively, we made big plays. We forced four turnovers.

End Jmond Tapp anchors the Bulldogs defensive line and is one of Louisianas top recruits for 2022. Khai Prean, a top 2023 prospect, is the teams leading rusher, while Bryce Leonard leads the offense at quarterback.

Senior cornerback and slot receiver Lex Melancon compared his teams start to past seasons.

Its very different, he said. With Hurricane Ida and being out for two weeks, we just prepared. It was tough, but we were able to get through it. It is my last season. You just have to make the most of it.

After the delayed start, Melancon said the team was ready to get out and play.

It was an awesome feeling, he recalled. We were very anxious to get out there. It was great.

The Bulldogs face another Class 1A power, Vermilion Catholic, Friday night in Abbeville.

The biggest thing is making up the time we lost, Schexnayder said. We only had a jamboree before last week. Were just trying to catch up.

After spending most of the weekend and Monday seeking another Week 4 opponent, Dutchtown got a surprising call from Abramson Sci Academy Tuesday morning.

The New Orleans area school informed the Griffins that their players had all returned and that they would travel to Dutchtown for a 7 p.m. Friday game as originally scheduled.

Seale Funeral Home in Denham Springs will be site of Thursday visitation and services for Denham Springs assistant football coach Brian Smith, who lost a lengthy battle with cancer earlier this week.

Visitation is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. Thursday, followed by services at 4 p.m. Smith coached at multiple local schools during his career, including Live Oak.

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Armed with a 1-0 record, fourth-ranked Ascension Catholic primed to make up for lost time - The Advocate

The Zachary High gym was the site of an extremely competitive match on Sept. 13 between the homestanding ZHS Lady Broncos (1-1) and the East Ascension Lady Spartans (2-1).

In a game scheduled only the week before due to hurricane issues, the two teams fought through almost five hours of freshman, junior varsity and varsity games.

The Lady Broncos freshmen fell in the opener (25-12 and 25-18). The junior varsity came firing on all cylinders with a 25-14 first-set win and, after falling behind 6-9 in the second set, fought for a 25-23 second-set victory.

Fighting back was the story for the varsity game as well. In the first set, neither team could separate until senior Kyra Woods serves and consecutive spikes by senior Lillian Talbot gave the Lady Broncos an early 8-5 lead.

The Lady Spartans fought back and tied the score before a huge block by senior Jules Patin ended the run. The remainder of the set was closely fought with ties at 18, 20 and 24 before the Lady Broncos finally took the set on a serve by senior Audrey Poche.

In the second set, East Ascension ran out to a 3-0 lead before Patin worked the court for several service winners to put the Lady Broncos up 4-3. Similar to the first set, the Lady Broncos played from behind but not too far behind, never falling by more than five points.

Once the Lady Spartans reached 18 points, the Lady Broncos turned up the intensity again and took their first lead on a spike by Talbot. The Lady Broncos went down again (24-21) but found a little more in the tank as Poche served out a second set victory (26-24).

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We were up two sets to zero, and we were just not able to bring it home. We struggled to finish," coach Cheri Perry said.

The third set was similar to the first two, with the Lady Broncos playing from behind for most of the game before tying the score at 26 in yet another white-knuckle set. EA turned the tables and pick up a 28-28 win.

We made a lot of errors back to back, which allowed EA to gain momentum, Perry said.

The Lady Broncos fell behind early (9-18) in the fourth set and were not able to close the gap, losing 15-25.

We made some good thing happen. We have to learn to focus on what we did good as opposed to thinking about a mistake we made five points ago, Perry said.

Service errors in the fifth set denied the Lady Broncos a victory (8-15). Perry put the game in perspective when she said, Although the loss was frustrating, at this point, we dont lose; we learn. This is even more true as the season is young, and district does not start for another two weeks.

The Lady Broncos will be back home for district games against Baton Rouge High on Sept. 28; Denham Springs on Oct. 12; and Central on Oct. 21.

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Zachary volleyball, East Ascension wage five set war on the court - The Advocate

Southern Draws Jacobs Ladder is getting a new limited edition size this week in celebration of the 21st birthday of its namesake, Ethan Jacob Holt, the son of company founders Robert & Sharon Holt, and who recently joined the company on a full-time basis.

According to a report by Cigar Aficionado,the cigar has been several years in the making, having been rolled in September 2016 at Tabacalera AJ Fernandez Cigars de Nicaragua S.A., where the company has its cigars produced. It is also using an early prototype blend of the Jacobs Ladder, using a Mexican San Andrs wrapper and Nicaraguan habano 2000 binder instead of the Pennsylvania broadleaf wrapper and American-grown binder of the rest of the line. Both versions use Nicaraguan tobacco for the fillers.

The Jacobs Ladder The Ascension is offered in a 5 1/2 x 52 box pressed belicoso fino vitola and has a standard foot as opposed to the closed foot of the other sizes in the Jacobs Ladder line. It will debut on Sept. 23 at Famous Smoke Shop with an MSRP of $11.79 and offers in 10-count, paper-wrapped bundles. The company is releasing 1,000 packs to the retailer, and then will release 10,000 more in January 2022 as part of a widespread release.

The company has thus far declined to provide images of the cigar or confirm the accuracy of the report.

I strive to capture the essence of a cigar and the people behind them in my work every cigar you light up is the culmination of the work of countless people and often represents generations of struggle and stories. For me, its about so much more than the cigar its about the story behind it, the experience of enjoying the work of artisans and the way that a good cigar can bring people together. In addition to my work with halfwheel, Im the public address announcer for the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks during spring training, as well as for the Salt River Rafters of the Arizona Fall League, the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury and the Arizona Rattlers of the Indoor Football League. I also work in a number of roles for MLB.com, plus I'm a voice over artist. I previously covered the Phoenix and national cigar scene for Examiner.com, and was an editor for Cigar Snob magazine.

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Southern Draw Adding Jacobs Ladder The Ascension - halfwheel.com

Brother Martin waited all game, but if finally put together a touchdown drive.

Torey Lambert scored on a 1-yard run with 35 seconds left to lift Brother Martin to an 8-7 win over East Ascension in a game played at Dutchtowns Griffin Stadium.

East Ascension (0-2) took a 7-2 lead on Troy Dunns 43-yard touchdown run early in the third quarter. The Spartans were able to turn back every drive by the Crusaders until the final minute of the game.

Brother Martin picked up the games only first-half points on a safety. East Ascension began its second possession of the game inside its own 10, and a high snap sailed out the back of the end zone.

HOW IT WAS WON

East Ascension held the ball for five minutes at the start of the fourth quarter as it drove to a first at the BMHS 38. On fourth-and-10, Dunns pass for Zhavier Jupiter was incomplete setting the stage for the Crusaders game-winning drive.

With 5:51 left to play, Brother Martin used nine handoffs to Lambert to move down the field. Crusaders quarterback Garrett Mmahat ran 5 yards on a fourth-down conversion at the EA 32 to keep the drive alive. At the EA 1, Rionte Jones stopped Lambert for no gain on third down. On fourth down, Lambert slid into the end zone off of left guard.

PLAYER OF THE GAME

Brother Martin running back Torey Lambert rushed 25 times for 119 yards and the game-winning touchdown. He also caught two passes.

NOTABLE

EA quarterback Troy Dunn completed 9 of 18 passes for 108 yards. He was bottled up for most of the game, but broke free early in the third quarter for a 43-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-1. Taking the snap under center, Dunn followed a line surge to the BM 35, spun away from a pack of defenders and sprinted to the end zone.

East Ascensions offense looked out of sync in the early going, and finished the first half with only four first downs and 73 total yards. On its opening series, a high snap over Dunns head resulted in a 10-yard loss, and effectively killed the drive. Starting at the EA 6 on its next drive, East Ascension was hurt by another high snap, this one through the back of the end zone for a safety.

The Spartans defense matched Brother Martins efforts in pitching a first-half shutout. Early in the first quarter, the Crusaders went for it on fourth-and-4 from the EA 34, but a pass completion netted only two yards. Brother Martin crossed midfield three times in the second quarter, but was turned away each time. Twice it was forced to punt, and on the third series Leyton Liuzzas 37-yard field goal try was short and left of the goal posts.

Spartans kicker Evan Kern averaged 48.0 yards on four punts in the first half.

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Brother Martin's wait worth it against East Ascension - The Advocate

The new clinic will provide primary and specialty care, as well as hospital and emergency services, a news release from Ascension said when the facility was announced. The clinic replaces a former Barnes & Noble book store.

The new clinic was expected to create about 50-70 jobs, Patch reported.

It's a small-scale hospital with emergency services and eight in-patient beds. Altogether it takes up 32,000 square feet, the news release said. The clinic plans to operate 24/7 every day of the year, and will be staffed with the expected nurses, specialists and doctors.

"We know that having convenient access to care is a priority for our patients and their families. This new health center provides an innovative way to integrate inpatient and outpatient services while keeping care close to home," said Bernie Sherry, senior vice president of Ascension.

Services at the center will include cardiology and electrophysiology. An outpatient imaging facility with MRI, CT, ultrasound, mammography and X-rays is planned. The facility was announced in January last year.

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Greenfield Ascension Healthcare Center Cuts The Ribbon - Patch.com

Retired military fighter pilots flew over several Green Country hospitals to honor healthcare workers and first responders Tuesday night.

Ascension St. John hosted the Light Up the Sky event to show frontline workers they aren't alone.

Hospitals are also putting on a light display in support of the workers.

The planes flew over Ascension St. John Owasso, then continued south over Hillcrest Medical Center, followed by Ascension St. John Tulsa at 21st and Utica, Saint Francis Health System at 61st and Yale and and ended at Ascension St. John in Broken Arrow.

People then joined together for an outdoor prayer service for healthcare workers and first responders.

They also asked community members and business owners to light up their homes and businesses in blue to honor frontline workers.

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Ascension St. John Hosts 'Light Up the Sky' To Honor Frontline Workers - News On 6

Nashville, Tenn.-based Vanderbilt University Medical Center plans to file an amended plan for a 42-bed bed hospital in Murfreesboro, Tenn., according to the Daily News Journal.

If approved by state regulators, the medical center's $144.3 million facility would be near an eight-bed hospital planned by Nashville-based Ascension Saint Thomas Rutherford.

The move comes about a year after Vanderbilt's proposal for a 48-bed hospital was rejected by state officials in favor of the eight-bed Ascension microhospital.

If the amended plan is approved, the facility would be called Vanderbilt Rutherford Hospital and would house an emergency room, intensive care unit, obstetrics, surgeries and cardiac catheterization services.

"We did not undertake the decision to submit a new application for Vanderbilt Rutherford Hospital lightly," said C. Wright Pinson, MD, deputy CEO and chief health system officer for the medical center.

Read more here.

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Vanderbilt to propose 42-bed hospital near 8-bed Ascension facility - Becker's Hospital Review

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) Hospitals across Tennessee are at a breaking point as doctors work non-stop to try to keep up with the influx of patients.

A year ago, the COVID ICU Unit at Ascension Saint Thomas West was pushed to the brink. This week, doctors said it feels like deja vu.

The severity, and the rate that they get worse, its absolutely hard to watch, said Brett Campbell, an ICU Physician at Ascension Saint Thomas West.

The hospital granted News 2 access inside the ICU Unit, however, we were only to show certain video due to the privacy of the patients.

Six weeks ago the hospital reported there was one patient on ECMO and on Tuesday there were ten. Doctors say the vast majority of patients are unvaccinated. For some, the goal is to be placed on an ECMO machine and not a ventilator.

ECMO machines works by inserting a plastic tube into a large vein, often through the neck or chest. The tube allows for the patients blood to flow out and be filled with oxygen, before going back into the body.

Its one thing to see people in their 80s with multiple comorbidities succumb to the illness, its another thing to talk to the wife of somebody whos younger than me, and tell her shes going to be a widow, said Dr. Campbell.

Healthcare workers are exhausted and straining to keep up with the surge of COVID patients. Many of the units have been transformed to house patients.

Were very short-staffed and its because of the pool of the COVID patients. I mean some of the halls are never opened except for COVID, said Angela Gicewicz, an RN in the Critical Care Unit.

Joe Gammon started out like many other COVID-19 patients, believing the virus wouldnt hit him that hard. On Tuesday, he admitted he was wrong.

I was incoherent and not even able to function, to the point where she gave me an ultimatum. Youre either going to go by ambulance or Im going to drive you to the hospital, Im concerned for your health, Gammon said, remembering the last conversation he had with his wife before going to the hospital.

Gammon says after that, most things are a blur. The father of six children is a semi-truck driver from Lascassas. He says he was preparing for foot surgery when his oldest daughter started to feel sick. She tested positive for COVID-19. Gammons wife then became sick. Taking care of his entire family, then things got blurry, I apparently got really ill.

Like many others, thats where Gammons journey began. His wife took him to a Murfreesboro hospital back in July, and his condition worsened. Gammon was transferred to Ascension St. Thomas West, where they saved my life, they really did.

Gammon considers himself lucky to be alive. After a month of being in a coma, and continued hospital care, on Tuesday he was taken off the ECMO machine.

When the going got tough, I tried to fight through it as much as I could, because I know that somewhere out there, there is somebody else that needs this bed desperately, said Gammon.

Gammon says he had the chance to get the vaccine early but decided against it. He explained that he was a conservative talk show listener, and while he believed the vaccine was helpful, he thought there was a shortage of doses. Now, he is urging others to speak with their own physicians to hear information straight from those on the front lines.

I literally died, and they brought me back several times, said Gammon. Not getting the vaccine could cost you your life. Ive actually lost several family members since Ive been in here from COVID and its a bitter and hard pill to swallow.

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Its absolutely hard to watch: A look inside the COVID ICU Unit at Ascension Saint Thomas West - WKRN News 2

Elections delayed

Gov. John Bel Edwards ordered the delay of upcoming elections that featured important constitutional amendments.

The governor approved Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin's recommendation to move the Oct. 9 election to Nov. 13 and the Nov. 13 election to Dec. 11.

This will allow our staff and local partners more time to properly prepare for a statewide election while ensuring the integrity of our election processes and that our voters traditional voting habits are as undisturbed as possible, Ardoin said.

All parishes will vote on constitutional amendments.

Residents in the 3rd Justice Court district will elect a new justice of the peace. Running for office are Lynelle Johnson, a Republican from St. Amant; Kim Landry, a Prairieville Republican; and J. Russell-Roddy, No Party, of Prairieville.

In yet another sign of recovery from devastations of Hurricane Ida, Ascension Parish reopened all of its waterways to recreational boat traffic.

With everything weve been through, I think people need a little recreation, said Ascension Parish President Clint Cointment.

He noted that parish officials have been in regular contact with electrical utility companies, who have confirmed that all electrical lines are removed from the waterways.

But some smaller canals and tributaries may be partially or fully blocked with debris, so he urged caution.

Many waterways still have floating debris, although most appears to be settling on the banks, said Cointment. But with boat traffic that could result in debris breaking loose. Again, please use extreme caution.

He also noted that due to the amount of debris following out of our waterways into Lake Maurepas, there may be many hidden dangers. And because the storm brought on some major fish kills in several areas, the air may be kind of pungent.

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Livingston Parish has done assessments on its waterways and has determined it is not safe to reopen the areas.

As COVID-19 cases rise in our area and hurricane damage many events are being canceled or moved to a virtual program.

We're listing planned events, but be aware that anything could get canceled. Call or visit websites to verify the event will be held.

The staff at the Ascension Parish Health Unit reminds residents they can get the COVID-19 vaccine at the health unit.

The Moderna vaccine is available at the Ascension Parish Health Unit, 1024 S. East Ascension Complex Blvd., in Gonzales. Appointments are available by calling (225) 450-1425.

For information, visithttps://ldh.la.gov/covidvaccine/.

Take off Pounds Sensibly meets starting with weigh-in at 9:15 a.m. and meeting at 10 a.m. every Thursday at the fellowship hall at Carpenter's Chapel Church, 41181 La. 933, in Prairieville. Dues are $5 a month. For information, call Miriam Sanchez at (225) 202-8521.

The Recycling Center is at the Department of Public Works headquarters, 42077 Churchpoint Road, in Gonzales. Operating hours are 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Thursday and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday.

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Around Ascension for Sept 15, 2021 | Ascension | theadvocate.com - The Advocate