Gail Huss, RN, COHN-S, Kristen Williamson, RN, COHN-S, Kim Alvis, RN
Occupational Health Nursing in the Aftermath of Katrina
Gail Huss, RN, COHN-S
Senior Medical Specialist
Center for Toxicology and Environmental Health, LLC
CTEH occupational health nursing staff (Kim, Kristen, Anne, and Gail) found themselves on the front lines for several weeks after Hurricane Katrina hit the U.S. gulf coast. Due to the devastation, medical support services were severely interrupted and the services that were available were already taxed with providing services to hurricane victims residing in the impacted areas.
Shortly after the hurricane, multiple companies sent hundreds of workers to begin the process of recovery and restoring their business services impacted by the storm. Due to the interruption of local medical services and the number of workers deploying to the area, several clients requested that CTEH provide occupational health nurse support for their site workers. Two nurses initially deployed to Mobile, Alabama, on September 2nd and were then moved to the Mississippi gulf coast area (Ocean Springs, Biloxi, and Bay St. Louis) a few days later. An additional two CTEH nurses were deployed to the New Orleans area on September 5th. Services provided by the CTEH nurses included basic first aid, tetanus and hepatitis A immunizations, worker education regarding potential health hazards in the area (snakebites, spider bites, infections, wound care, personal hygiene, etc.), respirator fit testing, and provision of personal protective equipment (coveralls, boots, gloves, electrolyte drinks, snake chaps, sunscreen, hand sanitizer, glasses, hardhats). CTEH nurses remained in the area for a total of seven weeks. A total of 537 tetanus and 91 hepatitis A immunizations were provided during the response.
The presence of the CTEH nurses provided client workers with a greater sense of safety and security while working the hurricane recovery efforts, according to reports from our clients. The site workers were frequent visitors to the CTEH first aid station for treatment of minor wounds, insect bites, skin rashes, headaches, cold/sinus symptoms, joint/muscle aches, sunburn, and heat stress. Having accessible nursing support at the work site resulted in a reduction of lost work time among site workers since they did not have to travel for hours just to get to an open clinic or hospital for minor injuries/illnesses. Although the CTEH nurses’ primary role was to provide health service assistance to client work crews, many resident evacuees also sought out assistance and counsel from the CTEH site nurses. In multiple instances, CTEH nurses were able to provide basic assistance to these evacuees such as dispensing donated glucometers to diabetics who did not have their personal equipment with them due to displacement from the hurricane, facilitating contact with local emergency services for assistance, identifying appropriate medical services for individuals with serious medical conditions, and helping coordinate the dispersal of non-medical supplies to such as clothing.
The magnitude of devastation and loss in the area was unbelievable. Hopefully, the presence of CTEH nurses gave these evacuees a caring individual to voice their concerns about their current situation – their hopes, their fears. The CTEH nursing staff continues to receive letters of thanks and well wishes from both site workers and resident evacuees.
