Abstract
Geographic circumstances: I was on duty in the nursery during the hurricane and flooding of the hospital; the nursery did not reopen. I continue to work in 3 other local hospitals. About the author: I am a neonatologist and have resided in New Orleans, a city that I love, for the past 32 years. After Hurricane Katrina, I am now very involved in the community, but my medical work is more administrative in nature. A few weeks ago I was reflecting on the impact of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico when I received an e-mail asking me “to think and type some comments of my experiences post Katrina” as we were approaching the fifth anniversary of the worst natural or man-made disaster in the history of this country. It seems almost unreal to remember that event while evaluating another disaster, the worst oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Still, there is no comparison to the devastating human and economic effects of Katrina. Five years have passed, and significant progress has been made. The educational system has been revamped, and steady increases in students' academic scores are taking place. Community clinics established throughout the city are being praised as a national model for access to excellent primary health care. We have a new mayor and a new chief of police who are restoring the faith and hope of people in their government. Emergency preparedness is also much better. We have substantially improved hurricane preparations with coordination and cooperation from the local, state, and federal governments. The state is now divided into 9 regions with a coordinator designated for each. A network has developed between the Louisiana Department of Health and the Louisiana Hospital Association. State plans of action are tailored to the characteristics of the disaster with … Address correspondence to Juan J. Gershanik, MD, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, West Jefferson Medical Center, 1101 Medical Center Blvd, Marrero, LA 70072. E-mail: jgershanik{at}aol.com
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