M. Nora Oates, MD
Dr. Oates joined Hales Pediatrics in September, 2000. She grew up in Princeton, N.J. where she graduated from Princeton High School. She spent her undergraduate years at Stanford University, where in addition to her academic endeavors, she played for the women’s soccer and lacrosse teams, the latter of which she served as captain her senior year. She received her medical degree from Stanford University School of Medicine, and remained there to complete her internship and residency at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital in Stanford, California. Prior to joining Hales Pediatrics, she was a staff physician in the emergency department at Children’s Hospital of New Orleans. She is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. Nora and her husband, Dr. Fred Lopez, are the parents of two children, Emma and Andrew. Dr. Oates sees both sick and well children in the office and shares hospital rounds and after hours call. Dr. Oates was recently recognized as a “Healthcare Hero” by New Orleans CityBusiness.
Elizabeth Swanson Milvid, MD
Dr. Milvid joined Hales Pediatrics in July, 2005. She sees sick patients in the office, helps with hospital rounds, and shares after-hours call. She is a graduate of Isidore Newman School and Johns Hopkins University, and received her medical degree and pediatric residency training at Lousiana State University School of Medicine. She is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. She and her husband, Ken, are the proud parents of four sons – Will, Max, Harry, and Sam.
Kathleen E. Gorman, MD
Dr. Gorman joined Hales Pediatrics in July, 2007. She sees well and sick patients in the office, helps with hospital rounds, and shares after-hours call. She is a graduate of Ursuline Academy, the University of New Orleans, and Louisiana State University School of Medicine. She completed her pediatric residency training with LSU, doing much of her work at Children’s Hospital. We are delighted that Dr. Gorman, a former patient of Hales Pediatrics, is a part of a practice she grew up in and knows so well.
Charles A. Haydel, Jr. MD
Dr. Haydel joined Hales Pediatrics in July 2014. He is a graduate of Jesuit High School, where he played on the Jesuit basketball team that won the Louisiana State Championship. After graduating from Louisiana State University he earned his M.D. from Louisiana State University School of Medicine. He completed his Pediatric Internship and Residency with LSU doing much of his work at Children’s Hospital in New Orleans, LA. He and his wife, Sarah (a dentist) are the proud parents of Madison Lea, Charles III (Tripp), and August. Dr. Haydel cares for both sick and well children in the office and helps with hospital rounds.
Meghan Jones, MD
Dr. Meghan Jones joined Hales Pediatrics in January, 2023. A native New Orleanian, she graduated from Mount Carmel Academy and then went on to University of Georgia, where she graduated with a degree in journalism. After a few years writing, she made her way to Louisiana State University School of Medicine and completed her pediatric residency with LSU, primarily training at Children’s Hospital. She and her husband, Michael, are the proud parents of two girls, Cate and Lucy. She is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. She sees sick and well children in the office and helps with hospital rounds.
Stephen W. Hales, MD Emeritus
Dr. Hales has practiced pediatrics in New Orleans since 1978. He started Hales Pediatrics in 1982 as a single physician practice. He is a graduate of the University of Utah College of Medicine. After completing his pediatric residency in Arizona he served for two years in the United States Public Health Service, followed by a fellowship in Pediatric Immunology and Allergy at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio. He is a Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics at LSU School of Medicine, where he teaches a course on doctor/patient relationships and medical ethics to first year students. He has served on the Boards of Trustees for Children’s Hospital, the Alliance of Not-for-Profit Hospitals, the Parenting Center at Children’s Hospital, Metairie Park Country Day School, St. George’s Episcopal School, the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Good Shepherd School. Post-Katrina he has worked to support educational reform in New Orleans as a founding Board Member of New Schools for New Orleans and the Pro Bono Publico Foundation. He is also a Director and member of the Executive Committee of Fidelity Homestead Savings Bank. He and his wife, Nancy, are the parents of six sons and grandparents of fifteen grandchildren (mostly granddaughters).
After more than forty years of caring for several generations of children and their families, Dr. Hales has announced that he will retire from active practice at the end of 2018. In a letter to patients and families, Dr. Hales describes his gratitude to the families he has served and his confidence in his associates at Hales Pediatrics. Read Dr. Hales’ letter
Each of our pediatricians is board certified. They are members of the medical staffs, and attend newborns, at Touro Infirmary and Ochsner Baptist Hospital. They are also active staff members of Children’s Hospital, where they admit children and infants past the newborn period.