NATIONAL INFUSION SERVICES
Local business holding firm in ever changing health care market
Special Advertising Section
In a time of great uncertainty and change in the health care system, when many small businesses are opting to throw in the towel, locally owned National Infusion Services (NIS) remains committed to weathering the storm and serving the south Louisiana community.
“When the margins evaporate and the tough decisions need to be made, a local provider like us can opt to ride it out,” says NIS’ co-owner Sharon LeBouef. The future of health care is very uncertain, but as one of the last locally owned and operated infusion pharmacies in Baton Rouge, NIS continues to make decisions every day to make their services affordable for those who need them. The buck stops here in Baton Rouge, not states away in a corporate office, enabling NIS to assist clients on a case by case basis. This allows the option of offering payment plans or assisting patients in working with their insurance company.
“We don’t want to have to say no to anyone,” says LeBouef. “We are a local company, and we care about your health. We got into this to take care of sick people. We’re going to stay, and keep the faith that when the day is done, we’ll still be taking care of people.”
NIS employs about 70 people in the Baton Rouge area. The company provides IV medicines in the home setting, hospitals, long-term acute care facilities, nursing homes, assisted living facilities, rehabilitation clinics, hospice agencies and psychiatric facilities. In the past year, NIS has expanded into the New Orleans marketplace to serve the needs of an even larger population.
Moreover, by combining efforts with home health care agencies, NIS is able to provide personalized care targeted at meeting the individual needs of patients in the home setting. In addition to addressing the ever-changing needs of homebound patients, NIS is committed to preserving patient independence by managing needs through their Ambulatory Infusion Center (AIC), located within the office on Brittany Drive. The AIC accepts patients by referral and appointment only.
NIS was one of the first infusion pharmacies to accept Medicare D in 2006, something many of their competitors were not doing. Instead of hanging back and waiting to see what everyone else would do first, NIS jumped right in. “We’ve never run our business worrying about what our competitors are doing,” LeBouef says. “For the past 12 years, we have focused on the needs of our patients and those of the community and will continue to do so.”
NIS is proud to be a Baton Rouge-owned and operated health care provider—a local company making local decisions. “We want people to know that we are here in the community, we live among you, we support the same causes and we’re in it for the long haul,” LeBouef says.