Care For PA

Like the rest of Americans, hospital employees and volunteers across Pennsylvania watched in horror as the wrath of Hurricane Katrina was slowly revealed in the days following its August 29 landfall. The hurricane ravaged New Orleans and other parts of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama, leaving tens of thousands homeless and killing thousands. Even though Pennsylvania remained unscathed by Katrina, its hospital community answered the calls for help with an outpouring of compassion and generosity.

Dozens of hospital employees traveled to affected areas to provide care and any help they could, while hundreds more offered to help. Hospital employees who remained in Pennsylvania held fundraising events, sent supplies to the region, and treated and cared for some of the nearly 2,500 evacuees temporarily relocated to the state.

"Collectively, the Pennsylvania hospital community has risen to the enormous challenge before the nation--standing ready and, in some instances, providing care with endless compassion and generosity,�? said Carolyn F. Scanlan, President and CEO, The Hospital & Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania.

Both of Pennsylvania's Federal Disaster Medical Assistance Teams were deployed to affected areas. The 35-person team from the Erie area was led by Russell Bieniek, M.D., medical director of the emergency department at Saint Vincent Health Center. Dr. Bieniek and his team spent nearly two weeks at New Orleans' Louis Armstrong Airport where they provided triage and treatment at a temporary medical center. "It was wall-to-wall people waiting for care and transport,�? Bieniek said in an interview. For days Dr. Bieniek and his team slept in the baggage claim area and took showers in a trailer provided by the forestry service. Even so, nearly all, if not all members of the team said they would do it again. "When you looked into their eyes you could see the relief. So many people said to us, you didn't have to do this, but thank God you did! That made it more worthwhile.�?

Likewise, Dr. Keith Conover, an emergency physician at Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh, led another Pennsylvania Federal Disaster Medical Assistance Team for a two-week mission in the Waveland, Gulfport, and Pearlington, Mississippi, areas. Dr. Conover and his team provided care in makeshift treatment tents, devastated homes, and make-shift shelters, seeing more than 300 patients a day.

Other hospitals sent teams to affected areas to relieve and assist exhausted employees at affiliated hospitals. A team from Carlisle Regional Medical Center, affiliated with Health Management Associates (HMA), answered a call for volunteers to relieve staff at another HMA hospital, Biloxi Regional Medical Center in Mississippi. Nancy Lee, chief nursing officer at Carlisle Regional Medical Center, assembled a team of six fellow employees who wanted to help. The team spent six days providing care in the hospital's emergency room and medical-surgical floor. Sharon Sites, an occupational therapist at Carlisle Regional, even helped out with billing data.

Still other hospital employees across the state supported relief efforts by holding fundraisers for organizations such as the American Red Cross, Salvation Army, Habitat for Humanity, and others. Scores of hospitals across the state also provided generous financial donations to charities, as well as donated medical supplies and equipment, food, and personal care items. Doylestown Hospital, for example, donated 2,500 pounds of medical/surgical supplies and vaccine. In another case, Wayne Memorial Hospital medical staff donated money to the American Red Cross. "We had the money in our treasury and we felt giving it to the people who need it most at this time was the right thing to do,�? said Dr. George Tietjen, chief of the Wayne Memorial Hospital Medical Staff. Wyoming Valley Health Care System organized and donated $5,000 worth of merchandise to benefit infant victims of the hurricane, including items such as wipes, lotions, and blankets. Susquehanna Health System offered a dollar-for-dollar match to any monies employees designated for the American Red Cross during its United Way fundraising campaign. As a result, in December, the health system matched the $10,281 in employee contributions, for a total donation of $20,562.

These stories are only a few of the countless examples of compassion and generosity that came from Pennsylvania hospitals and its employees in response to Hurricane Katrina. "The response to this tragedy by the men and women of the nation's hospitals is something we can be extremely proud of,�? said Dick Davidson, president of the American Hospital Association. "I know that it sometimes seems like people forget what a hospital means to its people. If Americans did need a reminder, they don't now. The world watched as you continue to keep the promise behind the blue and white 'H.' Thank you.�?

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