OLOL Opens New Cancer Facilities

Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center in Baton Rouge ushered in a new era of health care when it began seeing patients at its new Cancer Institute on Dec. 20.

Four days earlier, OLOL chaplain Father Donatus Ajoko blessed the 19,500-square-foot building that will serve patients for imaging, non-oncology infusion, palliative care, oncology infusion and OLOL Physician Group Medical Oncology. Patients previously received that care in the Mary Bird Perkins building although it was administered by Our Lady of the Lake.

“We have worked nonstop since August to relocate our oncology services and to prepare this space for our patients,” OLOL President and CEO Scott Wester said in an interview with The Catholic Commentator, describing what he called the first phase of a scheduled two-phase development. “This development was what I consider to be extraordinarily quick, starting the project at the end of August and here we are before Christmas and the redesigning of the office infusion and build out of the  imaging center (is complete).”Cancer Institute team members attended the blessings which were held in each of the new locations. The newly renovated facilities will be the home of the Cancer Institute.

“The nice thing about that office space is that it also includes the infusion center,” Wester said. “If you are a patient that needs to see your doctor and needs to have an infusion you get to do it in the same location. You don’t have to go out the door and into another location. It’s all right there.

“We have a laboratory and you get the laboratory results right there. It’s all comprehensive.”

He said with a touch of pride that the imaging center includes advanced imaging diagnostics that will be used solely on patients who have been diagnosed with cancer.
“It’s one of a kind in the state of Louisiana demonstrating the advancement we are making to identify different types of cancer, locations of cancer, which then leads to the treatment of the disease,” Wester said.

Phase 2 will be the development of the “signature” Cancer Institute building. Wester said OLOL is in the final selection process of the architect and work is continuing on architectural plans, with a potential groundbreaking in 2022 at a site yet to be identified.

To aid in a smooth transition to the new location on Our Lady of the Lake campus, cancer patients will enter at the newly designated Our Lady of the Lake Cancer Institute entrance at 7777 Hennessy Blvd., parking lot C, hospital officials said. They will be greeted at the entrance by guest services who will guide them to the location(s) of their appointment(s).

“We are excited for our patients to receive quality care in these beautifully constructed spaces. Special care was given to each space to ensure that both providers and cancer patients have everything they need along their cancer journey,” said Dr. Daniel Nuss, transitional chief of Our Lady of the Lake Cancer Institute. 

Wester said OLOL annually treats approximately 3,000 cancer patients at OLOL and the Franciscan Health System close to 6,000 patients in Louisiana and Jackson, Mississippi. Additionally, OLOL is developing multi-dimensional treatments teams for each cancer  patient.

“So if you are diagnosed with a  particular lung cancer you have a clinical  team that is comprised of a medical oncologist, surgeon and (staff members) to make sure you have the specific treatment for the specific diagnosis,” Wester said. “Our cancer physicians always try to make sure we are very centered on the patient.”

He said physicians also consult with OLOL Vice-President of Cancer Services “to ensure the development we do improvise the outcome of the cancer.”