Laurel Branch, MD is an interventional endoscopist at Ochsner Clinic Foundation in New Orleans, Louisiana. Dr. Branch has an interest in pancreaticobiliary diseases and interventional endoscopic ultrasound. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Texas at Austin and medical degree from the University of Mississippi Medical Center. She completed internal medicine residency and an internal medicine chief year at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. She then relocated to San Diego for gastroenterology and advanced endoscopy training at the University of California San Diego where she also served as chief fellow. During fellowship, she worked with the Association of Women Endoscopists  (AWE) for their annual AWE Week Conference as well as medical outreach and endoscopy observerships in Southeast Asia. She was awarded fellow of the year by AWE in 2023. She has an interest in clinical education and has completed clinician educator certificates in residency and fellowship. With their extended families in Mississippi, Dr. Branch, her husband, and daughter have been happy to set roots in Louisiana.   

Dr. Loganantharaj is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine, Section of Gastroenterology at LSU Health Sciences, where she also serves as the Director of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) Program. She has been focused on advancing education in gastroenterology, organizing Women in Gastroenterology and IBD conferences featuring nationally recognized speakers and attracting healthcare providers from across the Gulf Coast.  She has been selected to serve on the IBD-REACH Committee (2024–2028) and was an AIBD Ambassador (2024–2026) and a member of the IUSCAN Communication Committee. She led the implementation of intestinal ultrasound in the LSU IBD clinic. Through her experience building educational programs, collaborating with multidisciplinary teams, and engaging clinicians across the region, Dr. Loganantharaj has developed strong connections within the gastroenterology community. As Membership Committee Chair for the Louisiana GI Society, she hopes to expand membership, increase engagement among early-career physicians and trainees, and foster a collaborative professional network that supports education, mentorship, and advancement of gastroenterology across Louisiana.