Medical volunteers for Katrina turned away by Surgeon General

Message from Angela:
I opened the email below on Tuesday evening, September 27th - after my first full day in Pearlington, Mississippi. In one short day, I had bandaged cuts; distributed first aide supplies, food, water, and clothing from the back of my SUV; and, taken nurses from the free clinic in Bay St. Louis out with me who immunized at least 15 people against Tetanus and Hepatitis A. We had to quit and return the next day because they ran out of vaccine due to the overwhelming need. Every day for days they went out with me in the afternoons and immunized adults and children.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Katrina, HHS"
To:
Sent: Monday, September 26, 2005 2:57 PM
Subject: Message from the Surgeon General


> When you offered to volunteer in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, you
> demonstrated a terrific willingness to help your fellow Americans during a
> time of great need. That dedication to service is commendable. Since there
> was such an overwhelming response to my call for assistance, there will
> not be opportunities for all who signed up on the HHS website to be activated
> to go to the affected areas at this time. All, however, are needed to help
> strengthen the public health infrastructure and improve emergency
> preparedness; the needs are national in scope, but can be addressed by
> assisting at the local level. Therefore, I would like to take this
> opportunity to tell you how you can continue to help your nation on an
> ongoing basis.
>
> One of my highest priorities is public health preparedness. One way I
> address this priority is through my leadership of the Medical Reserve
> Corps(MRC) program. This is a national system of community-based MRC units. MRC
> units are cadres of public health and medical professionals, and others
> too, who work on public health activities throughout the year, and who can
> readily be called upon if an emergency strikes the community. By
> volunteering ahead of time, MRC members are identified, credentialed,
> trained and prepared in advance so they can help immediately in a
> disaster.
>
> Some of the first public health and medical volunteers who responded to
> Hurricane Katrina were MRC members in the local communities along the Gulf
> Coast. In Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana, MRC members were prepared as
> the storm approached. After it hit and needs were identified, MRC members
> helped staff medical clinics, supported special needs shelters and
> provided other assistance as needed. As evacuees poured into communities throughout
> the nation, MRC volunteers were already prepared to help with their needs
> as well. And when the need for additional public health and medical
> assistance was identified, MRC members from around the country were asked to help
> outside of their local jurisdictions and to deploy to the affected areas.
>
> I urge each of you to learn more about the organization by visiting the
> MRC website at www.medicalreservecorps.gov. Find the MRC unit near you and
> join. If there's not a nearby unit, you can assist your community and our nation
> by helping to establish one. If you would like more information or some
> help in getting started, please call (301) 443-4951 or email
> MRCcontact@osophs.dhhs.gov.
>
> Thank you for your willingness to help. I hope we can count on you in the
> future as well. Join the Public Health Service team by becoming a part of
> the Medical Reserve Corps and help our nation to be better prepared!
>
> Richard H. Carmona, M.D., M.P.H., F.A.C.S.
> VADM, USPHS
> United States Surgeon General

Tags: Surgeon General