UNC Hospitals' Hurricane Katrina Response Blog

Imagine:

That sleeping in a tent is a luxury......

That you work in a local ER of a 500 bed hospital...
the only one that remains functional in a six county area during and after the storm, that you have been there since the storm caring for 3 x the normal numbers of patients AND that you are living there because you, your family and the majority of the healthcare workers working with you are homeless....

That patients first thank you for being there and doing what you do AND in the same breath apologize for coming to get medical care because they are taking your time away from someone who needs it more than they do.....

That your patient who is a local red cross volunteer AND also homeless, tells you that that their loved one, boss, a person on the street had to talk them into coming to see you because they didn't want to take away time from doing relief work.....

That despite the fact that people have been spending their days wandering from makeshift tent to tent, standing in the squeltering heat for hours on end, in search of food, shelter, healthcare, government assistance and phones to try and reach loved ones, they manage to smile and say "At least we are alive" and "thank you for what you are doing" and "what can we do for you?".....

That you took care of someone, sent them to a hospital for an operation and that they returned days later with treats as a care package for you....

That a handshake, a hug and a smile are often the best and the most appropriate medicine you can provide.....

That home is no longer where the building and foundation are, where the mailbox is, where you hang your hat or take off your boots, its not even where the pictures are because you had no time to get them BUT....

That home is now where you find community in the truest sense of the word, where people who were once strangers are now your brothers and sisters and kin who offer you hope, sustenance, a smile, a human touch.....

That you have gotten more out of an experience than you could ever give back.....

That you don't have to imagine.
That in spite of the devastation: physical, emotional and economical, all of this is reality.....
That this reality exists here and now in Waveland ......

Renae

UNC Hospitals' Hurricane Katrina Response Blog

What To Bring to Kamp Katrina

Getting ready to be deployed here to Kamp Katrina? Let me give you some useful information on what you need to bring, and perhaps more important, what you don't need. Though Chris Ogden or others will need to confirm this for you, there is a good chance you will fly in, missing a delightful 13 hour bus ride. Additionally, you'll likely have a 40 pound weight limit on what you can bring. No need to waste it on useless stuff.

You don't need heavy boots, a canteen, a sleeping pad, mess kit, BDU pants or many of the items you might have needed if you came to a debris filled disaster area. Thanks to those who came on the first deployment, this place has become luxury camping. You'll sleep on a spring suspended cot topped with a foam pad. There are several options for sleeping quarters. Some us sleep in a large, air conditioned tent which extends from and surrounds MED-1. It's at least 12,000 square, probably more. Other folks sleep in a series of air conditioned gear equipment trailers used to haul gear here. There also non air conditioned tents, if you prefer. It gets cool at night, especially in the air conditioned spaces. Bring a light weight sleeping bag.

You don't need to bring food, or drinks. There's plenty and the quality is acceptable, lots of snacks, too.

Comfortable working clothes are fine. Scrubs work well. Shorts are now condoned. You'll probably want a hat. Several of us look lobsterish. If you may work at night, bring a sweater or sweatshirt. I became uncomfortably cool working a night shift. Wear comfortable shoes that you like to work in. You'll be walking on a parking lot tarmac. Running shoes work. Clogs work. You choose. The hazardous debris has been cleaned up.

Fueled by excitement, weird hours and a love of chemical toilets, the greatest health problem for the staff here has become,... ah... constipation. Metamucil anyone? Seriously, if this is ever an issue for you, some kind of fiber pill or suppliment should be considered. The experience here could stay with you longer than you'd like.

The only chemical experience here is the toilets. There the standard issue used on construction sites. They're well maintained. We have showers here. Well to be honest, it's a chemical decontamination tent. One for guys and one for gals. The sign says "Male Shower." No hot water. Water sitting in the tanks has been in the sun for a while it's just on the cool side of warm. I've never found it gasping cold.

Now cell phones work. If you don't have them to call home, phones are available here. We've got Wi-Fi access, too.

Got to go. More patients are waiting. Look forward to seeing you Thursday.

Wes

Home

Our group is winding down its tour. We will begin the journey back home in roughly 24 hrs. Home = Beds = Hot showers = Laundry machines = Regular toilets = normalcy. What a bittersweet thought home is.

I now know what the first group felt when we first arrived. One person scheduled to leave the day after were arrive told me that they would "love" to stay, but they were so ready to go home. She seemed so sad and her eyes seemed to tear up when she told me this.

Home holds for us so many wonderful things. Home is where family and friends are. Home is where our "stuff" reside. Home is where we have a sense of security. Home is where we know we have some control.

Yet, for the people who have been fortunate enough to be here, part of us will always be home in Waveland. We have connected to this place and the people here. Camp K-mart has become home for us. We know that at some time this place will have to be turned back over to the businesses that use this parking lot. Yet, when I return to Waveland, I should want to visit home. I will, like in my home in North Carolina, know the spot where I slept, ate, relaxed, and hid when I needed to be alone.

My hope is that for those people who called Waveland home that they can return home. It will be a painful journey for them. Home, where their family and friends were, where their "stuff" was, where they had a sense of security, can be nothing more than a pile of rubble. Home will never be the same again because it will forever be tied to this nightmare. I hope that as they return and we continue to do our part to help in their recovery that we can help restore that good sense of home this place once held for them. Maybe we will become the friends and family that can provide them that sense of security that they have lost. Maybe, when I return home to Waveland, someone whom I've been fortunate enough to meet here will see and recognize me and say, "Hey there's what's his name who use to live over there at Camp K-mart."

JDM