Summary
In the weeks following Katrina, Americans helplessly watched the news accounts of patients suffering in flooded hospitals, waiting for an evacuation too late in coming. The problems stemmed from a lack of planning and preparation. The difference between a catastrophe and a disaster is crucial. A catastrophe overwhelms state and local governments and requires a federal response that anticipates needs instead of waiting for requests from below. Even with plans and responsibilities established, some say catastrophic medical response still would be inadequate: The US simply does not have the medical personnel to attend to large numbers of casualties, or the means to distribute supplies needed to provide care to thousands of sick or injured. Trained medical personnel are important, but so are supplies and medicine. Even if sufficient national medical emergency plans were in place, experts warn of gross deficits in the US ability to cope with large numbers of casualties.
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Extract
Medical Catastrophe
As the White House and Congress grow increasingly alarmed over the possibility of a deadly flu pandemic and scramble to spend billions on vaccines, health experts say the United States is incapable of delivering mass care. For evidence, they say, look no further than the bumbling efforts to help victims of Hurricane Katrina.
In the weeks following Katrina, Americans helplessly watched the news accounts of patients suffering in flooded hospitals, waiting for an evacuation too late in coming. Outside the disaster zone, government doctors stood by hundreds of empty cots, watching for patients who never arrived. Paltry resources were predeploved. Experts fear that sick and injured victims died for lack of timely care. The problems stemmed from a lack of planning and preparation, experts say. And they pale in comparison to what would happen if the government had t...See the full content of this document
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