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Many local hospitals will remain open during Hurricane Francine, but plan to close their clinics in anticipation of the storm.
Katie Johnston, Baton Rouge General’s director of communications, says the hospital system has generators in place with extra fuel and that emergency power plans are set.
“We’ve been busy in real time with all of our storm prep, from essential staffing plans and sleep rooms, to evacuation plans and checking food and medicine stocks,” Johnston says.
Camryn Curtis McCarter, marketing and communications specialist at Our Lady of the Lake Health, says the system’s emergency preparedness team will remain in contact with local and state officials to support the community. The hospital has also brought in its emergency supply stock, including water, linens and PPE, to keep facilities running through the storm.
Here is a list of hospital and clinic facilities and their operation plans during the storm.
Baton Rouge General
Open: All Baton Rouge General hospital campuses and emergency rooms—Bluebonnet, Mid City and Ascension—will remain open. Baton Rouge General’s outpatient wound care and outpatient therapy will be open until noon on Wednesday.
Closures: Baton Rouge General Physicians’ Clinics and Express Care locations will be closed Wednesday. Outpatient imaging clinics will be closed except for a small number of early morning appointments.
Ochsner Health
Open: The emergency room will remain open and emergency surgeries will proceed.
Closures: Clinics will be closed all day Wednesday. Select elective and outpatient procedures will be conducted and a few stand-alone clinics will maintain operations in the morning. All urgent care locations in Baton Rouge will close at noon on Wednesday.
Our Lady of the Lake Health
Open: Hospitals and emergency rooms will remain fully operational throughout Francine.
Closures: Clinics are closed on Wednesday. Patient appointments have been postponed, rescheduled or moved to virtual visits in advance of the storm. Virtual visits will be available on Wednesday and Thursday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. On-demand virtual visits will be offered on Wednesday and Thursday from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m.
Woman’s Hospital:
Open: Woman’s Hospital will remain open for inpatient and emergency care.
Closures: Clinics will be closed and all elective procedures and surgeries will be canceled. Woman’s Retail Pharmacy closes at 10 a.m. on Wednesday. The hospital is tentatively scheduled to reopen on Thursday with outpatient clinics opening at 10 a.m.
Editor’s Note: This article has been updated since its original publication to include Our Lady of the Lake Health’s additional hours.
