‘Surviving the Storm’ Highlights Ochsner Medical Center’s Travails During Hurricane Katrina

By Anonymous

Louisiana Public Broadcasting will air never-before-seen footage of a hospital surviving Hurricane Katrina in a documentary about Ochsner Medical Center, one of three hospitals to weather the storm by staying open after it struck.

“Surviving the Storm” will air on the following dates:

* 8 p.m. Thursday on Louisiana Public Broadcasting,

* 8 p.m. Saturday and midnight Sunday on WLAE-TV in New Orleans.

“Surviving the Storm” was produced by LPB’s Dorothy Kendrick and narrated by New Orleans resident and award-winning actor John Goodman. The one-hour program reveals how Ochsner Hospital continued to treat patients despite flooding and devastation. The documentary includes video shot by Ochsner Videographer Jackson Ellisor, who initially recorded the hospital images for archival and insurance purposes.

“LPB discovered Ochsner’s tapes while developing the LPB story Katrina’s Smallest Victims,” said Kendrick. “We felt the Ochsner footage could help hospitals worldwide understand the challenges of surviving a disaster.” Ochsner relinquished the tapes and editorial control to LPB.

“This story shows how Ochsner spent years preparing for this catastrophic event by soliciting advice from hospitals in Houston and Pensacola who had previously suffered serious damage from hurricanes,” said Beth Courtney, president and CEO of Louisiana Public Broadcasting. “Through interviews, the staff explains the benefits to having stockpiled supplies like extra generators, toothbrushes and portable toilets and how it allowed them to continue treating patients and provide care for first responders.”

Among the challenge’s faced by Ochsner employees was keeping the only operational pharmacy in the city open for the first three days after Hurricane Katrina so patients with chronic illnesses such as asthma and diabetes could continue receiving their life-saving drugs. Workers also had to protect the blood supply and other lab supplies.

Ochsner Pathologist Dr. Gregory Henderson was in the French Quarter when the storm hit. He treated New Orleans police officers as the only doctor in the Convention Center surrounded by thousands of desperate people.

Ochsner hospital administrators also issued paychecks without electricity to over 8,000 employees and worked to find all employees.

“One of the most important lessons from Katrina was having an effective disaster plan for our employees,” said Warner Thomas, president of Ochsner Health System. “We sent half our staff out of town before the storm so they could return and relieve essential personnel right after the storm. I hope that the lessons we learned, which are highlighted in this documentary, will help other hospitals and health care facilities better prepare for a disaster of any kind.”

AT&T and Lehman Brothers helped produce “Surviving the Storm.”

Credit: CityBusiness Staff Report

(Copyright 2007 Dolan Media Newswires)

(c) 2007 New Orleans CityBusiness. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.