Alexandria Administrator:

Robbie Wampler, RN is the Administrator of the Alexandria office. Robbie has worked as a registered nurse for 27 years. Her professional background includes hospital, long term care and hospice nursing. Providing care to the terminally ill through hospice has been her primary focus for the last 20 years as an Administrator and in providing direct patient care. Her roots grow deep in Central Louisiana, not only as her birth place, but also as the area she has chosen to live with her family and practice her profession. She takes great pride in providing the best hospice services available to her community.

Alexandria Medical Director:

Bruce W. Barton, MD received his BS degree from Mississippi State University in 1980 and graduated from Tulane University School of Medicine in 1984.  Dr. Barton served his residency at Tulane University Hospital and its affiliate hospitals in New Orleans and in 1987 he began his Internal Medicine Practice in Alexandria.  Dr. Barton is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Hospice and Palliative Medicine.  With more than 12 years as a hospice medical director, he believes strongly in the hospice philosophy.  Dr. Barton is an active member of our hospice team, making patient visits, attending weekly team meetings, working closely with our field personnel on care and educating our community regarding hospice and the services offered by St. Joseph Hospice.

Dr. Barton and his wife, Martha, live in Alexandria.  He has two children and four grandchildren.

Baton Rouge Administrator:

Carmel Drago, R.N. is the Administrator/Director of Nursing of St. Joseph Hospice in Baton Rouge, LA. She has lived and worked in Baton Rouge for 35 years. Over her career, Carmel has worked in a hospital's burn unit, radiation oncology center, surgery, and for a private physician. She has been in nursing for 35 years, with 19 years of hospice nursing experience. She has been a hospice administrator and DON for over 10 years, with a staff of over 40 and a patient census of over 100.

Baton Rouge Medical Director:

Susan E. Nelson, MD, FACP grew up in Houston, Texas and attended Texas A & M University. She graduated in 1979 from the University of Houston with a BS in Pharmacy and worked as a pharmacist full time for one year prior to acceptance to the University of Texas Medical School at Houston. She continued to work part time as a pharmacist throughout medical school, and still maintains her pharmacy license in Texas.

Graduating from the University of Texas Medical School at Houston in 1984, she remained there for residency in Internal Medicine during which time she served as both Chief Resident and Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine.

Dr. Nelson is Board Certified in Hospice and Palliative Care Medicine and Internal Medicine, with added qualification in Geriatrics.

Dr. Nelson moved to Huntsville, Texas in 1989 where she and her husband, Dr. Robert Hart, had their own practice for 5 years. They relocated to Baton Rouge in 1994. Dr. Nelson primarily practices geriatrics with special emphasis on end-of-life care and has been involved with hospice her entire career, but has been a hospice Medical Director since 1999.

At St. Joseph Hospice, Dr. Nelson participates in interdisciplinary team meetings and is actively involved in patient care. She educates the staff as well as other members of the health care team in end-of-life care issues. Her goal is to make sure that “every day some one has left on this earth is a good day for them and their families and caregivers!”

 Monroe Administrator:

Shannon D. Newton, RN serves as the Administrator of the Monroe office of St. Joseph Hospice.  A native of East Texas and a resident of Monroe for the past 16 years, Shannon graduated from the University of Louisiana at Monroe with a BS degree in Nursing.  Having been a nurse for some ten years, she served in a telemetry and cardiac invasive unit before dedicating her career to caring for hospice patients over six years ago.  Shannon has worked as a hospice Case Manager, Assessment Coordinator and Community/Physician Educator and has spent the last four years as a Clinical Director of a hospice agency in the Monroe area.

New Orleans Administrator:

Cookie Sweeney, RN, CHPN, is the Administrator/Director of Nursing of St. Joseph Hospice and Palliative Care in New Orleans, La. Cookie is a registered nurse, Certified in Hospice and Palliative Care and a member of the 2001 "Great 100" Nurses. Cookie's nursing career spans over 35 years with a background in medical-surgical nursing, case management and medical-legal consulting. The past 15 years of her nursing career has been dedicated to providing quality end-of-life care in the New Orleans area, in both clinical and administrative capacities.

New Orleans and Northshore Medical Director:

Dr. Laurence Durante graduated from Georgetown University School of Medicine in 1983 having attended on a US Navy Scholarship. Following a rotating internship at the Bethesda Naval Hospital, Dr. Durante served 4 years on active duty as a Navy General Medical Officer.

Dr. Durante then took a Masters in Public Health at the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health in Baltimore, Maryland and completed a residency in General Preventive Medicine/Public Health in the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

After serving as the Health Officer for Queen Anne's County on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Dr. Durante returned to New Orleans where he provided Occupational and Employee Health services at Touro Infirmary. Since 1992, Dr. Durante has served on the faculty of the Tulane School of Medicine in the Department of Community and Family Medicine.

Since 1995, Dr. Durante has served as a full-time hospice Medical Director. He is board certified by the American Board of Preventive Medicine in General Preventive Medicine as well as Occupational Medicine and by the American Board of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Preventive Medicine as well as the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine.

Northshore & Picayune Administrator:

Carla Schuler, RN, BSN, CHA is the Administrator of St. Joseph Hospice offices on the Northshore in Covington and the Gulf Coast office in Picayune, MS.  She is a registered nurse with a BS in Nursing from LSU School of Nursing.  Carla is also a Certified Hospcie Administrator with 16 years of nursing experience.  Her nursing background includes medical-surgical nursing, operating room nursing, medical legal nurse consulting, home health, and hospice.  She is licensed in both Louisiana and Mississippi.  Carla has lived and worked on the Northshore and its surrounding communities her entire life and is committed to providing the highest quality of care to the Northshore and Gulf Coast communities.

Shreveport Administrator:

Dr. Jerome Cox, PhD, is the Administrator of St. Joseph Hospice in Shreveport. Dr. Cox holds degrees in industrial engineering, biblical studies, ministry and clinical counseling, and has worked in the field of ministry through his church and community for over 20 years.

Dr. Cox's leadership skills were greatly developed during his career as an officer in the US Army. While in the military, he served in the U.S. Army's elite fighting force, the Airborne Rangers.  He is a decorated veteran of Operations Restore Hope and Desert Storm. His military honors include the Humanitarian Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal and the Bronze Star with Valor.

Dr. Cox has been active in local hospice work since 1999 in the capacities of volunteer, chaplain, bereavement and volunteer coordinator, marketing representative and community educator. He is also certified through the American Academy of Crisis Counseling.

Dr. Cox lives in Shreveport with his wife of over 20 years, Linda, and their four sons. He believes "hospice is a ministry, and I am absolutely, 100 percent sure that I am serving within my calling."

Shreveport Associate Medical Director:

David Nelson, MD is a graduate of Louisiana State University school of Medicine in Shreveport, Louisiana.  Board Certified in family medicine since 1995, Dr. Nelson is an Associate Professor of Clinical Family Medicine at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center and is currently seeking Board Certification in Hospice and Palliative Medicine.

Dr. Nelson joined St. Joseph Hospice in April 2006 an an Associate Medical Director.  He brings a fresh, unconventional commitment to hospice as we know it, as he makes routine home visits to every homebound patient on the census.  He actively leads the interdisciplinary team at weekly update meetings, and is constantly educating and assisting clinical staff throughout the week as well.

A hands-on and compassionate physician, Dr. Nelson is involved in every aspect of patient care at St. Joseph Hospice.  He also represents St. Joseph Hospice well in the community, with his exemplary reputation and positive public relations.

Dr. Nelson and his wife, Valerie, a pharmacist, are the parents of five children. 

Thibodaux Administrator:

Cathy Bowen, is the Administrator of St. Joseph Hospice in Thibodaux.  Cathy has been a nurse for 28 years, and graduated from Charity Hospital School of Nursing.  Her experience includes neonatal, pediatric and adult ICU; emergency room; dialysis; home infusion therapy; and home health.  She has over 8 years experience as a case manager, admit nurse, on-call nurse, and administrator.