With the end of the summer rapidly approaching, it came as no surprise last week when Hurricane Isaac hit the Gulf coast, sending state, local and federal partners into full response mode. I visited Louisiana on Friday and Saturday, and saw that despite an extremely slow-moving storm that dumped as much as 16 inches of rain on some areas, the communities’ preparations for and response to the storm provided an opportunity to demonstrate their resilience.
Many people evacuated or sheltered in place, taking the necessary precautions to stay safe and minimize the health impacts that can result from emergencies. With the flooding and widespread power outages in Louisiana, patients with special medical needs who had been living at home or in nursing homes sought care elsewhere. To help provide medical care for them, HHS sent two of ASPR’s Disaster Medical Assistance Teams—from Georgia and Virginia—and two Federal Medical Stations, along with a U.S. Public Health Service team, to the area to establish shelters for residents with medical special needs.
Our teams set up the Federal Medical Stations in the Louisiana State University basketball stadium in Baton Rouge and in the convention center in New Orleans. The women and men who staff these medical stations are impressive in their commitment, service and capabilities. Many of the patients who came to these shelters rely on electricity-dependent medical equipment, such as oxygen compressors, and require skilled nursing support for wound care and other health conditions. When I spoke with the people using our medical shelters – patients, caregivers, and others – they repeatedly praised the wonderful and compassionate care our federal medical teams provided. I couldn’t be more proud of our teams and the hundreds of staff members who support them behind the scenes.
With the storm affecting the same areas as Hurricane Katrina and arriving exactly seven years after, many responders, emergency management officials, health and medical professionals, and members of the public spoke with me about the difficult emotions that Hurricane Isaac has evoked for them. At the same time, many spoke of the pride they felt in the progress they had made since Katrina, and how that sense of accomplishment helped them through the difficult periods. Emotional challenges are a part of every response too, and highlight the need for each of us to remember to take care of ourselves and each other, especially in a disaster. The VA this week released a Psychological First Aid mobile app for responders, which is available on the iTunes store, and I encourage you to take a look at it and share it as appropriate.
The preparedness and resilience we witnessed in Louisiana is a reminder to us all of the importance of being ready for emergencies. People there knew what to do and what to expect from each other. To help people on both U.S. coasts prepared for and respond to a hurricane, the American Red Cross developed a great new free mobile app specifically for hurricanes. It is available on iTunes and GooglePlay app stores. There is also a free app on Facebook called bReddi, which can help you establish and connect with lifelines – people who’ve agreed to provide you with whatever you might need in a disaster. But no matter how you do it, think through what you would need and how you would react in an emergency. September is National Preparedness Month so now is an ideal time to put your plan in place or review the one you have. We want everyone to be as safe and healthy as possible no matter what nature brings.
