A New CEO for Lakeview Hospital

 LCMC Health’s Lakeview Hospital in Covington has a new CEO. Benjamin Richaud, who has more than ten years of experience in healthcare management has been appointed.

“Richaud has a strong background in hospital operations, strategic planning and financial management,” the news release reads. “He has served in various leadership positions throughout his career, including his most recent role as CEO of Baptist Medical Center, a 603-bed, flagship hospital within the Baptist Health System (Tenet Healthcare) located in San Antonio, Texas.”

“Ben is a respected healthcare leader with more than a decade of senior leadership experience,” Greg Feirn, CEO of LCMC Health, said in a news release. “His strategic vision and commitment to patient-centered care make him an ideal fit for Lakeview Hospital.”

Ben holds a Master of Science in Healthcare Administration and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Alabama Birmingham, as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa. He is a North Shore native and is very excited to be working in his own community.

A full-service hospital with 167 beds that serve patients from St. Tammany Parish which include Lacombe, Abita Springs, Madisonville, Covington, Mandeville and Slidell. It has a 24/7 emergency room, a heart center, a surgical institute, a rehabilitation center and a behavioral health center.

“As a North Shore native, I am honored to have the opportunity to lead the exceptional team at Lakeview Hospital,” Richaud said in the news release. “I look forward to working with the talented staff and physicians to continue building upon the hospital’s strong reputation as a leading provider of healthcare services in the region.”

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A Gain in Single-Family Starts Seen in May

 The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau’s data shows a positive outlook when it comes to single-family starts. A good part of this is to give credit to limited existing inventory and improving supply chains.

May saw an increase of 21.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.63 million units.The May reading of 1.63 million starts is the number of housing units builders would begin if development kept this pace for the next 12 months. This caused the single-family starts to increase 18.5% which is still 6.6% lower than seen a year ago.

According to a NAHB/Wells Fargo HMI survey, builder confidence and housing starts are improving because of improvements to the supply chain. The start of the year though still puts it down 24% on a year-to-year basis. Single-family completions are only down 1.2% which is good news for the inflation.

Even though on a regional and year-to-date basis it is down in all four regions overall permits increased. Each region came out as 21.7% lower in the Northeast, 24.7% lower in the Midwest, 16.5% lower in the South and 24.1% lower in the West. Permits went up 5.2% to a 1.49 million unit, single-family up 4.8% to and 897,000 unit rate, and multi-family up 5.9% to an annualized 594,000 pace.

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Growing the Perfect Lawn

 The spring is the perfect time to get your lawn ready for the harsh summer heat. Many need to know how to go about lawn care, weed prevention, fertilizer, mowing practices and just any tip that can help create a beautiful yard. Louisiana Nursery gives us many examples for us to learn.

Bare-Bones Scenario

This is perfect for someone who has nothing to start off with or has a yard that is in poor health. Louisiana is known for an uneven mixture of loose dirt and packed clay which makes up the soil. If you are a new homeowner who inherited an unhealthy yard, you do not know what type of grass the previous owners used, which can be a problem. If you need to patch some areas, you might have to use a seed or grass sod that does not match the rest of the yard. If you have the means to do so, redoing the whole yard will give you the best-looking lawn.

If you want the best-looking lawn possible, you will need to start from scratch and actually remove the old sod. This can be done with a sod cutter which can be a maulan or gas-powered cutter. If you have low points in your yard once the sod is up, then fill them with river silt. Also, add topsoil and mix it in to create a healthier soil base.

Once you have added your grass by seed or sod, then add a lawn-starter fertilizer which will help with the rate of growth and the root system will be stronger. Water is also a must. You need to soak the lawn so that you can go two to three days in between.

If you choose to seed your yard, you will need to ask around or go to the professionals in your area that will tell you the best seed to plant for your climate zone. The only downfall to choosing to seed your yard is the long wait to see results. The benefit of doing it this way is that seeding takes fewer tools and a smaller budget than sodding your lawn.

Remember experts like Louisiana Nursery are a great place to start when it comes to a beautiful lawn. You can join their Garden Club which gives rewards to the members and weekly newsletters with pro tips.

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Tips to Clean Stubborn Windows

 No homeowner likes to take a Saturday to wash their homes’ windows but it is a chore that has to be done. Most of the time once you are finished, you see that they seem to never be completely clean. Here are some tips from the pros that can help you get them to sparkle and shine.

Get Rid of the Streaks

The trick is in the squeegee. You want to use a window-washing squeegee that has a smooth and soft rubber edge or if this is not an option, you can count on the trusty newspaper to do the trick. To use a squeegee you need to first dry the top or side of the window about an inch in and start to squeegee there. Another thing you want to do is make sure to wash windows in the shade and not in direct sunlight. If there is never shade, then choose to wash your windows on a cloudy day or in the evening.

Dusty Blinds and Midlewy Frames

If you dust your blinds to find them dusty again the next day, this is for you. In order to keep the dust at bay, spray your blinds with antiseptic spray. A good example is Static Guard. Using this on your window blinds immediately after dusting will keep them cleaner longer. When it comes to dusting your shades, you will need to do this once a month. Using a soft cloth or a Swiffer does the trick. If you do not have one of these, using a vacuum and its dusting brush will also work.

Mildew is a homeowner’s nightmare. To get rid of black or gray mildew spots on your window frame, use this cleaning solution. Take two ounces of household bleach and one ounce of laundry detergent in a quart of water and start cleaning. Remember when using this bleach-detergent solution, you should wear rubber gloves. To also keep your window sills clean, apply a coat of floor wax on them or spray them with a coat of WD-40 which will protect them as well.

Prolonging the Length of Clean Windows

If you notice that your windows seem to get dirty quickly, then you might want to think about changing your HVAC filters. Doing this once a month is the best practice because our homes today trap in a lot of dust, pollen, dander and other burdensome particles. Secondhand smoke is another problem that can shorten the life of a clean window. To clean you will need an ammonia solution that is the only thing that will cut the nicotine film. To make the solution you take one cup of lemon-scented ammonia in two and a half gallons of water.

These tips will help reduce the ever-annoying window cleaning problems. Not only do windows have these problems, but kitchen glass can also use these tips. Remember if you do this monthly you will keep a nice home with pretty windows.

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A Great Way To Relax and Enjoy Louisiana Nature

 Louisiana Tours and Adventures is the place people can go to relax and enjoy Louisiana nature at its finest. Captain Mike Jones loves exploring the Tchefuncte River and is a native of Madisonville.

“The river was always a cool place to be. I’ve always enjoyed everything about the water. I feel at home when I’m out there,” Capt. Mike said. “I love to ski and fish and see all of the wildlife. I think it’s the best place around. Growing up, that’s where I spent all of my time and where I learned so much about nature and the area’s rich history.”

Small groups of family or friends can go along on Captain Mike’s pontoon boat to see what the river has to offer. He has been doing tours through the Tchefuncte and its surrounding waterways. Wildlife along the tour can consist of turtles, deer, wild hogs, raccoons, alligators, owls, nesting ospreys and much more.

“I have a standard two-hour tour where we leave and make a big loop along the river and through a maze of cypress swamps. During the tour, I provide a narration on the history of the area and point out alligators and other wildlife,” Capt. Mike said. “I’m good at spotting them and pointing them out to people. It’s a way to see the region in a different way.”

“I really enjoy it personally because I get to see the animals progress over the years and see how their populations change,” Capt. Mike said. “We’re able to get really close to them. It’s always a real treat for people.”

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A New Owner For Netchex

 GrowthCurve Capital has purchased Covington-based Netchex. Netchex, a leading provider of cloud-based human capital management and payroll software, has been acquired by GrowthCurve Capital.  

Netchex was established in 2003 and is the leading provider of human capital management and payroll software solutions. The company focuses on small to medium-enterprise markets.

“Netchex is one of the fastest growing HCM technology companies in the industry, and we’re proud of the significant differentiation and strong brand that we have developed in the marketplace,” Boudreaux said in a news release. “GrowthCurve is the ideal partner to support the next phase of Netchex’s growth, and their expertise in AI, human capital, and scaling data-centric companies will provide a strong foundation for our vision to make HCM easy, intuitive, and a core value driver for the SME market. We also thank Primus Capital for their partnership and support while they were investors in Netchex.”

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