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Dr. Richard Roche on How He Forms Meaningful Patient Relationships

Patient-centered care is the top priority at Lovelace Health System, because focusing on providing quality care to each patient that comes through the doors is vital to successfully treating patients. Over the years, Dr. Richard Roche, internal medicine physician, has made it his mission to develop his approach to patient visits, ensuring that patients not only get the best treatment, but that they also have an experience where they feel listened to and treated with the utmost respect and care.

Life-threatening Pancreatitis Leads Las Vegas Woman to Lovelace Medical Center

In March 2018, Alexis Duran, 41, visited an emergency room close to her home in Las Vegas, New Mexico for severe stomach pain. The diagnosis? Acid reflux.

“It was the worst stomach ache I have ever had,” said Duran, who was at her niece’s gymnastics meet when she began experiencing excruciating abdominal pain. “I didn’t know where the pain came from. I thought I caught the stomach flu a week earlier, so I thought it was that still.”

25-year-old woman pleased with Lovelace Medical Center surgeon, staff: ‘It was just another day for them’

Twenty surgeries.

At age 25, Lacey Hensley has undergone 20 surgeries following a ruptured appendix in April 2017.

“I tell people I’ve had 20 surgeries before 25 and their jaws drop open,” Hensley explained.

A misdiagnosis of appendicitis at a hospital near her home in Bloomfield, New Mexico led the 22-year-old down a path of life-threatening health conditions. Hensley was hospitalized for seven months and treated at two facilities outside of Lovelace Health System.

Breast Health Awareness

 
October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and can serve both a reminder and an opportunity to take care of YOU! 
 
Breast health begins with a sense of what is normal for your breasts, also known as breast awareness. To promote breast health, consider doing regular breast self-exams. With practice, you will discover how your breasts vary in sensitivity and texture at different times during your menstrual cycle. 
 

Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day

Not every pregnancy ends with happy outcomes. Pregnancy and infant loss is a harsh reality faced by many. After the loss, you might feel stunned or shocked. You may be asking, "Why me?" You may feel guilty that you did or didn't do something to cause your pregnancy to end. You may feel cheated and angry. Or you may feel extremely sad as you come to terms with the baby that will never be. These emotions are all normal reactions to loss. With time, you will heal. You may grow your family in the future. You will never forget your baby.

Why should you choose physical therapy?

It’s possible to treat pain and combat chronic pain with physical therapy, a safe and effective alternative to pain medication.

Physical therapy can help people of all ages with a range of conditions such as lymphedema, arthritis, stroke and more. Anyone from Individuals with health problems that limit their abilities to move and perform daily activities, to as athletes, to older adults and cancer survivors, can all benefit from physical therapy.

The Lovely and Unique Labor of Love

  • "Thank you! I feel so much better!"
  • "I wish I had Lovelace Labor of Love with my other deliveries."
  • "Labor of Love has so many great resources."
  • "Thank you. I was really stressed, and Labor of Love has been very helpful."

A Typical Day for an Atypical Nurse: Inside Patient Connections at Lovelace Women’s Hospital

I will admit, when I first started working as a nurse, I really had little idea there was so much more I could do in nursing than dispensing medications and confirming doctors’ orders. Through the years, my desire to provide education to patients became a passion as I realized patients needed a little one-on-one teaching. Being in the Emergency Department (ED) can be a difficult time, due to why people are there. Often patients can get home exhausted and realize they don’t remember all of the care instructions given them at the hospital.

Food Safety Tips to Keep Top-of-Mind as an Expectant Mother

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), an estimated one in six Americans gets sick from foodborne illness every year. Nationally, September is recognized as Food Safety Education Month to spread awareness about the seriousness of foodborne illness. When you’re expecting, food safety should be top-of-mind to ensure the healthy development of your baby.

Supplements vs Diet: Are There Magic Pills or Magic Recipes?

Supplements and multivitamins are taken by over 100 million Americans. Despite the popularity of these pills, studies have found that getting essential vitamins and nutrients are best when they come from foods.


Most people that maintain a healthy diet with a variety of fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, fish and lean meat are getting the nutrients they need. However, there are some circumstances in which increased levels of some vitamins and minerals are needed. The first step in determining what supplements are right for you is to speak to your physician.