By Webster, Richard A Since Hurricane Katrina forced the closure of Charity Hospital three years ago, the New Orleans area's remaining medical facilities have struggled financially to care for hundreds of thousands of uninsured patients.

By Webster, Richard A Touro Infirmary went into lockdown today at 6 p.m. -- no one leaves the hospital, no one comes in -- as it prepares for Hurricane Gustav. Touro is operating with a bare bones staff of 350 employees watching over just 63 patients.

By Webster, Richard A Numbers can be misleading, said Touro Infirmary CEO Les Hirsch. Touro reported a 1.4 percent increase in gross revenues from $710 million in 2006 to $720 million in 2007, but net revenue dropped 6 percent from $190.2 million in 2006 to $178.6 million last year.

By Kreimer, Susan STAFFING Effort to promote health care careers in the "Big Easy" could become a national model Les Hirsch, president and CEO of Touro Infirmary, a teaching hospital in New Orleans, says he needs RNs more than any other health care job classification.

By Webster, Richard A New Orleans physicians suffered through another troubling year in 2007 with the continued post-Katrina absence of Charity Hospital and uninsured patient care financially battering every hospital.