Title: APHA Executive Board Responds to Hurricane Needs
Author:
Section/SPIG: Maternal and Child Health
Issue Date:
In a recent letter to the Executive Board, APHA Executive Director Georges Benjamin, MD, FACP, said, “It's been a challenging week for all of us, I'm sure, as we continue to react and respond to the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina. I want to thank all of you for your genuine concern for the affected families and communities, including many APHA members. Your dedication to public health and to this Association is inspiring.”
His letter goes on to talk about moving the Annual Meeting from New Orleans to Philadelphia, and how many of the New Orleans-based contractors have been retained, including the child-care provider, official photographer, florist and security vendor. Implications of the new date and location have been discussed with Annual Meeting program planners, speakers, Section chairs, and Affiliate leadership.
APHA is collecting donations during the Annual Meeting to assist in the recovery and rebuilding efforts. The Association has made a lead contribution of $5,000 and will ask Annual Meeting attendees to join in contributing what they can. APHA also has a link at <http://www.apha.org/preparedness/Katrina_relief.htm> to connect members with volunteer and direct action opportunities. In addition, Board Chair Linda Degutis is forming an APHA Katrina Response Task Force, chaired by board member Carmen Nevarez, to identify actions the Association can take to address the public health impact from Hurricane Katrina. The task force will identify both short-term and long-term recommendations ,with a focus on what APHA can do to help rebuild the public health infrastructure of the affected regions.
The Association has offered its assistance to federal officials and provided copies of the CD-ROM of Control of Communicable Diseases Manual, 18th Edition, to the CDC for relief teams heading to the affected areas. APHA has also posted chapters of Public Health Management of Disasters, 2nd Edition, to its Katrina response Web page above for those responding to the disaster. In Washington, APHA officials have met with Sens. Enzi (R-Wyo.) and Kennedy (D-Mass.), ranking members of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, to discuss health concerns related to the hurricane and rebuilding the public health infrastructure. They have also met with legislative representatives from the New Orleans area. APHA has also been actively working with the news media to broadcast the public health message.
Benjamin also discussed the impact of the hurricane on both members and staff. While the staff is now faced with the daunting task of quickly changing the meeting location and dates, many are also taking advantage of staff policy that allows them to volunteer six hours a week on hurricane relief efforts.