Joseph is our 2023 Champion

Joseph Brown came a LOT early… 16 weeks to be exact!  Born weighing only 1 lb and 9 oz, Joseph received lifesaving care at our CHRISTUS Highland Medical Center’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).  Now 6 years old and a recent graduate of kindergarten, Joseph Brown is growing up and is proudly representing all children served by CHRISTUS Shreveport-Bossier Health System as our 2023 CMN Hospitals Champion.

Hour Club Donors

Associates are generous with their time, talents and exceptional care for patients and families!  This amazing group of Associates are also generous with their donations!  These passionate and dedicated Associates give the equivalent of one-hour of their pay, every pay period to the CHRISTUS program of their choosing!  Thank you for going above and beyond!

Generosity and kindness

CHRISTUS Foundation Shreveport-Bossier is grateful for the generous sponsors of CHRISTUS Swim.  Children aged 5 and up have swim team options and can learn more at https://www.teamunify.com/team/usalaclac/page/home.

As one of our Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals programs we strive to not only help sick kids get better, but just as important is to help healthy kids stay healthy and well and establish lifelong wellness habits.  Thanks to these sponsors for helping local kids!

Tiny miracle babies are now in kindergarten

Wilder and Adeline, our very first patients in the CHRISTUS Highland West Wing Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in 2016 are now S-I-X and in kindergarten!  We are so excited that they got the best start in the CHRISTUS NICU and in Giraffe Omni-beds!  They are helping us raise awareness and funds for the critical need for three more of these specialized isolettes, with a total cost of $99,000.

Donate today and give tiny, miracle babies the best start!

Giraffe OmniBeds for NICU – Christus Foundation Shreveport-Bossier (christusfoundationshreveportbossier.org)

Exciting news!

We are thrilled to receive word that our very own Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals 2020-2021 Champion, Hunter Briery, has been named one of 10 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS!  He will represent CMN Hospitals patients across the nation as an ambassador and advocate for the needs of children served in CMN programs.  Join us in congratulating Hunter!  He’s going to make NWLA proud as he educated, informs and champions the cause!  Go Hunter Go!!

Associate Assistance answered many prayers

CHRISTUS Foundation Shreveport-Bossier is honored to have the opportunity to help our fellow Associates who faced economic hardships as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic and natural disasters, like tornados, floods and winter storms.  Our team expressed much gratitude and appreciation for the assistance.  It’s a wonderful thing to be a part of an organization that cares deeply for our Associates.  Our mission of extending the healing ministry of Jesus Christ happens not only for our patients, families, and community, but also for our Associates.  Recipients expressed:

  • I’m so grateful to be working for a company that will go above and beyond for their employees… thanks again from the bottom of my heart for blessing me!
  • THANK YOU!!  It’s great to be a part of the CHRISTUS family! It’s a pleasure working here!  I have met some great people and our team is awesome!
  • I am so grateful and blessed to work for a supportive CHRISTUS family, you can’t find that everywhere!

End of year gifts make a BIG difference!

It’s almost New Year’s Eve, and that means you have less than 2 weeks to get in your charitable donations to be included on your 2019 tax returns. We will direct your donations where you want them to serve… whether in one of our Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals programs like the Cara Center or Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, or to our Cancer Treatment Center, Grace Home Hospice or simply where the need is greatest, in Shreveport or at CHRISTUS Coushatta. Thank you for helping others with your donations! We are grateful for your support!

Make a Donation

Holiday help…

CHRISTUS Foundation Shreveport-Bossier is honored that you entrust us with your philanthropic contributions to make an impact for patients and families served by CHRISTUS Shreveport-Bossier Health System.  We love to have the opportunity to send an acknowledgement card to your friend or family member, physician, religious leader, teacher or other individual to let them know that you made a charitable contribution in their honor.  Pay it forward while celebrating special people in your life!  Call us today or use the tribute gift form under ‘GIVE’ and let us help you knock out your gift giving list!

2019 Champions are named

Imagine your brand new twins weighing 1 lb 6 oz and 1 lb 10 oz?!?  That’s the reality that Kaiti and Evan McFarland faced in October of 2015.  Adeline and Wilder arrived VERY early and required the expert care of the CHRISTUS Neonatal Intensive Care Unit!

 

Fast forward to today and these precious children are learning, growing and thriving!

 

We are so excited that they will represent all local children served at CHRISTUS Shreveport-Bossier Health System as the 2019 Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals Champions!

 

CHRISTUS Foundation — Shreveport-Bossier

7591 Fern Avenue, Suite 1903 • Shreveport, LA 71105

(318) 681-6781 • fax (318) 798-8317

CHRISTUS Highland Medical Center Celebrates
First Robotic Heart Bypass Surgery

Shreveport, Louisiana, Dec. 20, 2021– CHRISTUS Highland Medical Center is celebrating a landmark milestone in cardiovascular care with the announcement of the successful completion of the first minimally invasive robotic -assisted heart surgery.

On Thursday, December 16, Timothy Danish, M.D., CHRISTUS Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgeon, and the CHRISTUS surgical heart team specially-trained in robotics used the daVinci XI Surgical System to perform a coronary artery single vessel bypass graft on a 68-year-old male.

“It was a smashing success-the patient is doing well and we’re extremely excited about it,” said Dr. Danish.

Coronary Artery Bypass Graft surgery is a common heart procedure; and now patients in the Ark-La-Tex have a less invasive option available at CHRISTUS Cardiovascular Center of Excellence. The robotics technology changes the field of vision for the surgeon, providing 10 to 15 times magnification-a significant increase over the standard surgical loops, which only provide 3 to 4 times magnification. The robotics increases the safety of the procedure by allowing the surgeon to control the viewfinder and surgical instruments in real time from a workstation instead of standing throughout a long and complex procedure. The computer interface also has the ability to provide more exact needle placement, which is critical to the success of heart surgery. The heart’s blood flow can be re-established to the affected area of the heart without having to open the chest cavity. Instead, the heart is accessed through small incisions made between the ribs.

During the procedure, the surgeon is seated at a workstation a few feet away from the patient, and controls three robotic arms on the operating table, which become his or her eyes and hands for the minimally invasive surgery. While viewing a video monitor to see the surgical site, the surgeon expertly maneuvers instrument handles on the surgical robot to replicate those movements with the instrument tips at the site of surgery. 

“The robotic approach of this procedure minimizes the trauma of the surgery,” said Dr. Danish. There is a huge benefit to not having a full sternotomy, having the chest fully opened during the procedure. We anticipate that it will lead to a quicker recovery, a shorter hospital stay, and less pain for the patient.”

Upon completion of the procedure, Dr. Danish and his team immediately transferred the patient from the operating room to the heart catheterization lab for a post-procedural angiogram to ensure proper blood flow and function of the newly bypassed artery. The morning after surgery, the patient reported minimal pain and was mobile and comfortable. He has since been discharged and is now recovering at home.

 “It was functioning beautifully, we are very pleased,” said Dr. Danish. “Our team is extraordinary. They’re very hard working and dedicated. I am one piece of the puzzle, with the whole team we were able to accomplish something amazing for this patient and for the future of heart surgery in our community.” 

The successful completion of this robotic heart surgery is the latest innovative achievement CHRISTUS Shreveport-Bossier Health System unveiled as its new state-of-the-art Cardiovascular Center of Excellence, a $43 million investment in facilities and technology at CHRISTUS Highland Medical Center, nears completion. Patients now have access to cutting-edge robotic heart therapy without having to travel out of the region. 

“It truly is a remarkable accomplishment, being able to be one of the first to offer patients in north Louisiana a robotic bypass procedure that accelerates the healing process and allows the patient to get on with life with a new artery graft that traditionally required open heart surgery. Having this performed on our campus is historic for cardiac care in this region,” said Steen Trawick, M.D., Chief Executive Officer and Chief Medical Officer, CHRISTUS Shreveport-Bossier Health System.

For more information on cardiovascular services offered at CHRISTUS Highland Medical Center, visit https://www.christushealth.org/trinity/clinic/locations-directions/cardiovascular-thoracic-surgery .