Disaster Relief . . . How Can I Help?

In addition to providing direct support of the hurricane relief efforts, the Department for Public Health (DPH) continues to seek licensed medical personnel to assist with the recovery as well as future health crises. The volunteer medical database currently consists of approximately 1,200 health care volunteers.  Those interested should continue to register as new volunteers may be needed.  Volunteers can register by logging on at https://katrinarelief.chfs.
ky.gov.

The Louisiana State Board of Nursing's website is now active.  Contact them at www.lsbn.state.la.us.

The Mississippi Board of Nursing (MSBN) is also coordinating a supply of nurses to assist with disaster relief.  Click on the "more info" link for detailed information on how to volunteer via the MSBN.

If you are willing to deploy to Mississippi, Louisiana, or Alabama to assist with the Hurricane Katrina aftermath, please see the information provided below.

Potential volunteers should consider the following:

• Typical deployments are two plus weeks.
• Living and working conditions may vary drastically and may only provide minimal protection from the elements.
• Most of the impacted areas will be without electricity, air conditioning, and other creature comforts.
• Work will be long and stressful days.
• Volunteers should be in good physical condition and be able to work in the hot and humid environment of the gulf coast region.

Volunteers who are deploying to the U.S. Gulf Coast in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina should be up-to-date on the tetanus (Td) vaccination.    No other vaccinations are needed in addition to those routinely recommended in non-emergency situations.
 
Agencies across the state are referring volunteers to their health providers for receipt of the Td vaccination, if necessary.  The Kentucky Department for Public Health is recommending that volunteers who are being deployed receive a Td booster if 5 or more years have lapsed since the last date of Td.  If the number of years from the last Td is unknown, a booster vaccination is recommended.  These recommendations are based on the presumption that volunteers may find themselves in environments that might predispose to tetanus-prone injuries.  Volunteers who will be exposed to blood or bodily fluids should also have received the hepatitis B series, which is routinely indicated anyway for all health professionals.

If hurricane-related immunization questions arise, please phone 502-564-4478 at the Kentucky Department for Public Health’s Immunization Program and ask to speak to either Shirley Herald or Jennifer O’Brien.

DISPLACED NURSES SEEKING KENTUCKY LICENSURE . . .

If you are a Louisiana licensed nurse, who is displaced due to Hurricane Katrina, with plans to reside and/or become licensed in Kentucky, please click on "more licensure info" for relevant licensure information.

DISPLACED PERSONS COMING INTO KENTUCKY . . .

CHFS agencies continue to work collaboratively to connect displaced people with medical, social and basic needs services, including: food stamps; the Kentucky Transitional Assistance Program (KTAP); Medicaid; Mental Health/Mental Retardation (MHMR) services; DPH services, including clinical services and programs; and immunizations.  Evacuees displaced to Kentucky can still register their information in the KHELPS (Kentucky Helps) system, which was designed to establish a central database for coordinating necessary services for evacuees.  Information can be provided by logging on at http://chfs.ky.gov/preparedness.htm, visiting the nearest local health department or DCBS office, or by sending an email to chfsdphdoc@ky.gov.

Information for healthcare practitioners about the medical issues of hurricane victims can be found at http://www.bt.cdc.gov/disasters/
hurricanes/katrina.asp.  Many with chronic diseases may present without medical histories or records.  Patients with chronic disease who are without their regular medications risk deterioration of their conditions, and those with drug addictions may be in withdrawal, increasing the risk of violence and medical complications.

For services for displaced persons who are HIV positive, contact Lisa Daniel at the Kentucky Department for Public Health’s HIV/AIDS Branch at 1-800-420-7431.

For children who are displaced due to Hurricane Katrina and who present for enrollment in Kentucky schools without proof of immunization, the health care provider may write "student covered under McKinney-Vento 2001" on the provisional immunization certificate, in order to signify that the student is living in emergency or transitional housing.  Such a certificate will be acceptable for school entry in Kentucky.  The McKinney-Vento Act applies to all children and youth who do not have a fixed, regular and adequate residence, including children and youth who are:

• Staying with friends or relatives because they lost their housing;
• Awaiting foster placement; or
• Living in emergency or transitional shelters, motels, domestic violence shelters, campgrounds, inadequate trailer parks, cars, public spaces, abandoned buildings and bus/train stations.

Many lay individuals and health care professionals are striving to find a way to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina.  The Kentucky Department for Public Health (DPH) has been in contact with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Health Recourses and Services Administration (HRSA), and the American Red Cross,  and would like to share the following information:

As of 3 p.m. Friday, September 2, 2005, DPH has only been requested to send one team of 16 Public Health Registered Sanitarians to help with the food, water, and sanitation issues.  As of now, DPH has not been asked to supply any clinicians.  This will be a protracted crisis (weeks or longer) and going forward, DPH expects additional requests for various kinds of support through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).  They feel it is likely at some point that they will be asked to deploy some teams of health care clinicians (MD, RN, LPN, RT, PT, Rx, etc.) to travel to the Gulf Coast region or to other emergency care facilities established through the transport of victims out of the immediate area. 

To be prepared in case the request is made, DPH has launched a website at https://katrinarelief.chfs.ky.gov/ so health care professionals can sign up if they are willing to serve.   DPH has been instructed to send the contact information for public health professionals to the CDC, and others to HRSA.  Thus, the database they are building will allow them to identify each person appropriately and forward that information when requested by the federal authorities. 

DPH has had some medical students calling saying they are packed and ready to go, and just wanted to know where to go.  These students have been instructed to "stand down," to register on the DPH website, and to remain prepared to move if called upon.  It is frustrating to want to help but can't do anything immediately, however, it is understandable that only a coordinated effort can be useful. 

The lay public should go to the American Red Cross website at http://www.redcross.org/  for information on how to help, or call Kentucky Emergency Management at 800-618-1689.