HJNO Jan/Feb 2020

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF NEW ORLEANS I  JAN / FEB 2020 43 For weekly eNews updates and to read the journal online, visit HealthcareJournalNO.com “These new MAMLs will greatly enhance LDEQ’s ability to respond to air quality issues across Louisiana and will allow us to sample and analyze air quality data on-site and in real-time,” Brown said. Assistant Secretary Lourdes Iturralde, who over- sees LDEQ’s Office of Environmental Compliance, said settlements of civil penalties covered the $1.4 million price tag for one of the vehicles and $1.5 million for the second MAML. “They have all the bells and whistles – gas chro- matograph, reduced sulfur compounds analyzer, methane/nonmethane analyzer, and more,” said Roger Gingles, LDEQ assistant secretary for Envi- ronmental Assessment. “They have all the capa- bilities of the MAML we have now, testing for all criteria pollutants -- ground-level ozone, parti- cle pollution, lead, sulfur dioxide, carbon mon- oxide, and nitrogen oxide, as well as hydrogen sulfide, methane, ammonia, speciated reduced sulfur compounds, speciated hydrocarbons and atmospheric mercury.” The vehicles are mounted on a 35-foot truck chassis with a custom body to house equip- ment, supplies and work gear with benches. The MAML currently in use will remain active in a support role, said Bob Bailey, environmental scientist manager in the Office of Environmen- tal Assessment. “We will have them all out at the same time if it is necessary,” Bailey said. The new MAMLs will have an awning and exterior lighting to facil- itate night work and will also have the capabil- ity of collecting meteorological data. One of the new MAMLs is equipped for water analysis, Bai- ley said. LDEQ personnel are looking forward to having these new, fully functional assets in their work to protect the health and environment of Louisiana, he said. “It will be exciting.” Jesus Chua MD_Physician Summit Award 2019 On December 11, 2019, Jesus Chua, MD, a family physician in Franklin, La., was awarded the Physician Summit Award from Louisiana Health- care Connections for demonstrating a commit- ment to high quality, accessible care. The award is given annually to the primary care provider who achieves the highest scores in key Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) quality measures across the health plan’s provider network. Dr. Chua scored the highest among Lou- isiana Healthcare Connections’ 25,000+ health- care provider network in measures like Compre- hensive Diabetes Care, Adolescent Well Care and Adult Access to Preventive Care. LDHReports First Vaping- related Death in the State The Louisiana Department of Health confirmed the first death linked to a vaping-associated lung injury, or EVALI, in the state. Privacy laws prevent the release of further information about this individual. The outbreak in Louisiana now includes 30 total cases. Among the Louisianans with these lung ill- nesses/injuries, the primary exposure factor is a combination of nicotine and THC (tetrahydrocan- nabinol), the main active ingredient in marijuana. “One death is one too many. We urge peo- ple to recognize the dangers of vaping and to stop vaping until more is known about the spe- cific causes of lung injuries that have been occur- ring in people who use vaping products,” said Dr. Alex Billioux, assistant secretary of the Office of Public Health. According to statistics reported by the Depart- ment of Health, the median age of people diag- nosed with a vaping-related lung illness is 29. The youngest person is 17 and the oldest is 71. The combination of nicotine and THC accounts for more than half of all illnesses (55 percent) in Lou- isiana, though one in five individuals (21 percent) with EVALI report use of nicotine alone. Users of vaping products should immediately seek medical attention if they develop symptoms such as shortness of breath, chest pain, cough, fever and/or nausea, diarrhea, fatigue, weight loss, and vomiting. The Louisiana Tobacco Quitline, (800) QUIT- NOW (800-784-8669), a 24-hour-a-day, confiden- tial, free tobacco cessation helpline links peo- ple who want to quit using tobacco with trained tobacco cessation specialists who create an indi- vidualized plan to quit. This free service is avail- able in English, Spanish, and 150 other languages to people calling from anywhere in Louisiana. TYY and TDD accommodations for hearing impaired and deaf individuals are also available at (866) 228-4327. n Jesus Chua recipient of Physician Summit Award 2019 Pictured left to right are Joseph Tidwell, Vice President of Network Development for Louisiana Healthcare Connections; Bethene Newland, Louisiana Healthcare Connections Provider Network Specialist II; Stewart Gordon, MD, Chief Medical Officer for Louisiana Healthcare Connections; Jesus Chua, MD; and Marlette Chua, Office Manager.