MOREHOUSE GENERAL HOSPITAL HAS BEEN serving the needs of the community and delivering babies as a rural healthcare provider for over 90 years. Beyond our primary mission of providing high quality, cost effective health care services, we take pride in striving to stay abreast of the latest trends in healthcare.

The Labor & Delivery Unit at Morehouse General was created with mother-baby bonding in mind. We offer private rooms that are spacious and fully-equipped with the most up-to-date monitoring equipment to ensure the safety of your newborn. All of our staff is trained in fetal heart monitoring and neonatal resuscitation. After you have delivered your baby, your newborn will be place skin-to-skin to assist with bonding. Rooming-in is encouraged for healthy babies and their mothers to stay together day and night for bonding and care. Our staff is fully trained to provide lactation assistance should you choose to breastfeed. Breastfeeding offers significant benefits for both mothers and babies.

• Play an active role in your own healthcare as an equal member of your care team. • Deliver in large, private birthing suites with the most up to date equipment, which encourages in-rooming for mother-baby bonding. • Receive educational information from our team so that you are able to make informed decisions about your own childbirth, postpartum, newborn care, and breastfeeding experience. • Know you and your baby will be cared for by staff that is trained in fetal heart monitoring and neonatal resuscitation. • Stay safe in our locked unit. Since the security of our mothers and babies are a top priority, strict protocols are in place to ensure your protection. • Bond with our physicians and nurses. One benefit of delivering at a rural hospital is that you can develop a closer bond with your care team. In the L&D unit, our nurse-to-patient ratios are lower than average, ensuring our patients are truly cared for like family, not simply a patient.

Curtis Sanders, MD has been an obstetrician- gynecologist for over 23 years and joined Morehouse General 8 years ago. He attended the University of Kansas School of Medicine and continued with his residency at Louisiana State University.

As Chief of Staff, Dr. Sanders strives to always remain compassionate and ensures that his clinic is family oriented. He is equipped with the latest technology and information to care for women of all ages and through every stage of life.

Lisa Smith, Certified Nurse Midwife, is with our MGH Physician’s Clinic in Sterlington, LA and delivers babies at Morehouse General. With 20 years of labor and delivery experience, she is ready to provide the women’s health care that you need.

For new and expectant moms, Lisa provides personalized prenatal, labor and delivery, and postpartum care for patients with low-risk pregnancies. She is trained and certified to treat pregnant women with common complications as well. If complications arise that require a cesarean delivery during labor, a physician will perform the procedure with Lisa assisting.

Lisa’s true passion is providing evidence-based care while delivering babies and helping moms to have the birth experience they desire.

Both doctors are now delivering in our newly updated Labor & Delivery rooms that provide maximum comfort for laboring mothers and their support system. To schedule an appointment with either physician, please contact their office for the most convenient time available.

MGH OB/GYN Clinic Curtis Sanders, MD | Lynn Milliman, NP 430 S. Vine St., Bastrop | 318-283-3970

MGH Physicians Clinic- Sterlington Labor of Love Midwifery | Lisa Smith, CNM 8649 Hwy 165 STE 1 Monroe | 318-283-3980

Labor & Delivery Unit 323 West Walnut Ave Bastrop, LA | 318-283-3600

THANK YOU-THE ENTIRE STAFF AT NELA DENTAL would like to thank everyone that voted us BEST DENTIST in this year’s BayouBuzz awards. We are honored to serve the northeast Louisiana community and have been doing so since 2007. Our goal is to provide the best possible care for our patients and most up-to-date technology and certifications in our industry. Among general dentistry and cosmetic options, we pride ourselves on our superior Dental Implant and IV Sedation services.

A single-tooth, dental implant is an artificial tooth root that is placed into your jaw to hold a replacement tooth or a bridge. A proper dental implant coupled with a replacement tooth or bridge will look, feel, and function like a natural tooth. For those with missing or decaying teeth, dental implants can improve your smile not only cosmetically but structurally as well. Implants provide a stable and durable base for restoration so you can start to enjoy all your favorite foods again.

An implant-retained denture is a denture attached to implants inserted into the jaw. This is different from a regular denture which rests on the gums. Denture wearers often find their dentures can be held in place with dental implants for added comfort and stability. Some patients even experience improved speech; a welcomed benefit for many. Implant-retained dentures may provide patients with more confidence. Another major benefit of implant-retained dentures is the ability to enjoy foods previously considered off limits. However, there are some limitations on certain foods. Your dentist can explain these eating “do’s and don’ts” during your appointment.

Another option for dental impacts are Teeth in a Day, you can get your dental implants completed in just one day! NELA Dental is your home for this One-and- Done, dental implant services. In fact, it is one of the few dental practices offering this procedure in the state of Louisiana.

NELA Dental always strives to utilize the best in advancing technologies. Through the use of CAD (Computer Aided Design) and 3D printing, dental implants can be placed, and long-term temporary teeth can be printed and placed in one day. This process allows for more chewing ability and much less pain while healing. It also allows you to test drive your teeth, so you get the teeth you want.

Whether it’s root canal therapy or a routine procedure like a cleaning, IV and oral sedation is an option. Often times, sedation allows patients to have multiple procedures completed in one visit. Thus, cutting down cost and the number of visits to the dentist. We are pleased to be one of the few certified dental practices in the area to offer IV Sedation.

There are a few types of sedation our dentist can use so you won’t feel any pain during your surgery. You and your dentist can discuss which option is best for you and your situation.

Intravenous sedation, or IV sedation, is delivered through a vein in your arm to make you drowsy. IV sedation is an anti-anxiety medication, and the level of sedation can be adjusted to suit your needs. You will most likely sleep throughout the entire procedure.

An oral sedative is as simple as taking a pill, so it is easier to administer compared to other types of anesthesia. There is no needle involved, and it is just as effective as any other sedation option.

Oral sedation can be administered to patients who may have some anxieties about IV sedation to reduce their fear and make them more comfortable. There are a variety of single or incremental doses used to help medicate a patient during a dental procedure. These oral medications can help to reduce memory of the sights and smells of the dental office to avoid any discomfort. The sedation allows a more complicated procedure to finish faster and more comfortably for a patient.

A NELA Dental Smile starts with one phone call. Whether it’s for dental implants or a checkup, visiting the dentist is the key to overall good oral health. NELA Dental wants to make that financially easier for our patients. That’s why we offer membership plans to help alleviate the cost of some procedures.

We accept most major dental insurance plans, third-party payments, and offer flexible financing options. Call one of our convenient locations in Farmerville and Monroe, schedule your appointment.

ARTICLE BY DAN CHASON

We are so very blessed in north Louisiana to have an abundance of water for recreational use. There are rivers, bayous, ponds and lakes where many of us gather to enjoy water sports and the added bonus of escaping summer’s heat to enjoy the water and cool down. The problem is that with citizens gathering near and on the water comes the escalated issue of accidents that we read about in local and regional media weekly. Some of these accidents and drownings usually boil down to one issue: We become overconfident and do not take the dangers of water related accidents seriously. I will use myself as an example:

Back in 1990, I was hosting a weekly television show and was pursuing my dream of becoming a professional bass fisherman. I spent no less than three afternoons and most weekends chasing my dream. It did not matter the weather or conditions of the body of water, if you were looking for me I was fishing or scouting a lake I was going to fish. It was a cool March day and I decided to go up the Ouachita River and take my two children. My oldest son was around 7 and his little sister was 5. The air temperature was not cold and it was a pleasant day. The river was high and the water temperature was a brisk 47 degrees. I decided to check the back water and had found some fish holding on the original river banks. It was a relaxing and enjoyable day and I was hopeful I could put a good pattern together for the upcoming tournament. I was fishing near a river lake near D’Arbonne Bayou and was fighting the current to check out my choice spot. Both kids had on life preservers and I was on the front deck pitching and flipping. Suddenly and without warning I hit a precarious current that was back flowing which took my 19 foot bass boat and slammed the rear into a tree. This pushed me the opposite way and over the side into the river. 47 degree water is cold. I can remember being in the water and watching my boat began drifting south with my two babies aboard. Had my boat not hung on a group of trees and had I not been in pretty good shape and a skilled swimmer, you would not be reading this today. Lesson? In precarious situations, regardless of your swimming skill, it is best to have on a life preserver. Later in my career, I used to get laughs from fellow contestants as I would keep my inflatable life preserver on even when conditions were not that dangerous. I kept that PFD (personal flotation device) on me from the time I got out of my truck until was comfortably safe while fishing. To this day I see folks blazing up and down our waterways with their PFD’s in a storage locker in the boat and not on their person. Things can go wrong so quickly and that one lesson does not have to be repeated, especially as I have gotten older and I hope a little wiser.

Rivers are especially dangerous due to unseen current and undertow. But area lakes can be just as dangerous and many fellow anglers can attest when unseen obstructions such as floating logs or a stump struck at high speeds. But they can also be dangerous and not appear to be so. Just getting into the water to cool off or to fix a propeller issue with no PFD can be deadly. Going from the bank into the boat is also dangerous. Washouts at the ramp, slippery ramps or even a medical issue can turn into a disaster.

Louisiana law requires anyone in a boat under the age of 16 MUST wear a PFD when the outboard motor is running. One much unknown law is that if you are running a tiller handle motor, all occupants regardless of age must have on a PFD as well as the operator required to have a workable kill switch attached to their body with the PFD attached and latched. Simple rules and laws that protect you even when it may be “too hot” or uncomfortable to wear the PFD.

So how do we eliminate or greatly reduce this issue? Number one is ALWAYS wear a PFD when the boat is underway. The more dangerous the water (such as current in a river, or in low light conditions) wear the PFD. Your PFD should also have a whistle attached. The reason for this is to assume you fall overboard with a PFD on. You are alone and no one is in sight and the day turns into night. That whistle or any device that makes noise can assure rescuers can find you. The other issue is alcohol. The rules of the water are exactly the same as on the road. It is just as easy to get a DWI on the water as it is on the road. Alcohol and boating do not mix. Always have a designated driver who does not consume ANY alcohol. Never assume that you will remain in the boat when there are conditions on the water that you will never face on the road. Boating and recreational sports can be a lot of fun. But they can be deadly.

There was a recent tournament in Texas where a competitor was fishing as a non-boater. The boat was not underway with a big motor but both anglers were just fishing with a trolling motor. The non-boater was on the back and slipped, hitting his head on the boat as he fell in. The angler drowned and was retrieved but sadly was not able to be helped before he died. A simple automatic, inflatable PFD such as the popular “Mustang” would have most likely saved his life. This device would have kept his head out of the water and increased his chance of survival, even if it were a medical emergency.

So enjoy this summer on the water with one piece of advice. Life preservers have one common denominator: They don’t work unless you wear them.

I REMEMBER how music has played a major role in the spirit of our nation during periods of wartime conflict. I am thinking not only of patriotic words that stir our hearts, but also of the rousing tunes that impact us as well. These songs have moved many to deeds of loyalty and sacrifice for the good of our nation’s cause. Furthermore, they have afforded comfort and hope when the enemy appeared to be prevailing in the struggle.

Most of you readers are too young to remember much about World War II, but those of my generation will recall the popularity of the song, “God Bless America,” an “anthem” written by Irving Berlin and made popular by singer Kate Smith. This moving song called on us to pray for the help of our Creator as we faced the threats posed by the Third Reich and the “Rising Sun.” Throughout her history, the United States has been a people who have sought to defend those who have been oppressed by tyrannical foes and have unashamedly sought the divine help of our God in our efforts to help others. We have been led in these times of conflict by men and women who acknowledged our dependence on the assistance and guidance of the Lord and who turned quickly to Him for His help. After having won and then having defended our independence from Great Britain, almost all of our military involvement has been the result of our nation coming to the aid of others whose freedom was being threatened. And in those trying times, our practice has been to call out to God for His grace in our cause.

In more recent years, another song which sought the Lord’s blessings on our nation, moved the hearts of those who love the Lord and who also love the USA. The song, “God Bless the USA,” was written by Lee Greenwood and introduced in 1984, but made its impression on me almost 20 years later, following the malicious attack on our nation on the tragic day of September 11, 2001. On the heels of that wicked assault on our country, “God Bless the USA” was frequently sung

at patriotic gatherings all across our land. And the response from citizens who love their country was universally enthusiastic. My most memorable occasion relative to “God Bless the USA” took place during the summer following the “9-11” atrocity when haters of our nation flew airplanes into the Twin Towers and the Pentagon, killing thousands of Americans. The members of our congregation had gathered for an outdoor fish-fry at the home of one of our members who lived on Poverty Point AS WE CELEBRATE, LET THOSE OF US Lake just north of Delhi. During our enjoyment of the food and WHO ARE SO INCLINED RAISE OUR festivities, a talented local vocalist VOICES IN PRAISE TO GOD FOR HIS provided us with entertainment,

GOODNESS TO OUR NATION. and when he sang this song, there were tears all around and our hearts were overflowing with praise and thanksgiving to God and with supplications for His blessing to our beloved country. And when the singer reached the point where the song proclaimed, “I’ll gladly stand up next to you and defend her still today for there ain’t no doubt I love this land; God bless the USA,” everyone presented a rose to his/her feet in a visible commitment of loyalty to the USA and in gratitude for God’s blessings to our land. As I remember these treasured patriotic songs, I am aware that some in our nation take offense to any reference to God and His help in our nation’s struggles. I take offense, too! As much and as strongly as some deny that God has had anything to do with our nation’s history, others, just as strongly, are convinced that there is a God and that He responds to the faith and the prayers of His children. Perhaps if each group will acknowledge the right of others to hold different views from them, we could experience more harmony in our society. And one day, hopefully soon, when the Lord returns, we shall all know whether or not He has blessed the U.S.A. As we celebrate our nation’s independence on July 4th, let those of us who are so inclined raise our voices in praise to God for His goodness to our nation and in petition that His blessings continue to sustain us.

article by PAUL LIPE

opinion expressed is that of the writer