ASA Helping Residents Resume Life After Katrina

ife, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Our founding fathers deemed these to be self-evident rights bestowed on each individual — unalienable, inseparable from what it means to be a human being.

As anesthesiologists in training, we often take the first two for granted and focus much of our time on the third. Life? We have all necessities to sustain it — food, water, shelter, health care. Liberty? We are free to come and go as we please. “Pursuit of happiness” is where we focus most of our time — taking care of patients, learning/improving our clinical skills, contemplating what our next learning environment will be, whether it be fellowship, academic attending, tertiary care private practice, etc.

But for several anesthesiology residents this past September, life abruptly became their number-one priority.

“I worked in the hospital on the eve of the storm but had to return to my condo during a mandatory evacuation order to prepare my house and care for my cat … I decided to weather the category 4/5 storm at my home, two blocks from the Louisiana Superdome, along with some neighbors,” one resident reported. “I awakened to frightening winds that sounded like a freight train and lasted for six long hours. I had a window blow out from the pressure of the storm and had 140 mph winds whipping through my condo. As we huddled in the hall, we wondered when it would ever end.

“The following morning, I learned that the levee broke and looked out the window to see rising flood waters,” the resident continues. “I loaded up the car and planned my escape. My post-storm evacuation was harrowing, with water reaching mid-door of my SUV, and tree limbs, traffic lights, downed power lines and debris to negotiate.”

ASA has established a relief fund to assist victims of Hurricane Katrina. The Anesthesia Foundation-ASA Disaster Relief Fund has raised a total of $184,118.01 as of early October. Residents in need can apply for assistance from the foundation; details on donating as well as applying for funds can be found online at <www.ASAhq.org/news/katrinaresources.htm>.

Donors may tag their money toward a specific “Residents-in-Need” subcategory. The Anesthesia Foundation is identifying residents in need of emergency grants; such grants may be used for relocation purposes as dislocated residents attempt to resume their training as New Orleans rebuilds.

The pictures painted by statements from dislocated residents seeking ASA grants speak for themselves.

A New Orleans resident writes in a grant request:

“… I was on ‘external disaster’ call on Sunday, August 28, and I was evacuated by helicopter on Friday, September 2, from the roof of the hospital parking garage. My furniture and clothes are likely all destroyed. I got out of New Orleans with my wallet and a pair of cowboy boots.”

Another states:

“I lived in the section of town known as Lakeview, which was flooded with approximately 10-12 feet of water at my house. I was able to evacuate successfully but did lose many of my possessions in the process. My vehicle was completely submerged while on high ground in the area. I lost all of my clothing that was in my house as well as any electronic equipment. The water level reached the ceiling in my one-story house. At this time, I have no permanent housing or vehicle.”

Additionally many residents are the sole income for their families. “My wife, 18-month-old son and I evacuated the Saturday before the storm. Because we were given very short notice to evacuate, we took only a few changes of clothes and our important documents/pictures. Everything else we own has been destroyed by sewer water and mold.   I never could have imagined the extent this would change our lives.”

The Anesthesia Foundation-ASA Disaster Relief Fund was launched on September 14 with a $30,000 donation from ASA. The funds originally were earmarked for the ASA centennial celebration. In light of the natural disaster, ASA toned down festivities and re-allocated the monies toward disaster relief.

We must heed our fellow residents’ calls for aid in this time of crisis. Such a natural disaster could happen to any of us at any time. As one resident notes in a thank-you to the foundation:
“We want nothing more than to resume our residencies and our normal lives back in New Orleans. In the interim, this aid will help provide us with basics such as housing, food and clothing.”

While we all focus on our own pursuit of happiness, we cannot callously ignore that our colleagues in New Orleans are seeking to re-establish their lives, the first of the unalienable rights outlined by our forefathers.

"Things are slowly getting back to normal here, and we are even providing anesthesia for major surgeries, including pediatric and adult heart cases. The spirit of this city and this hospital was not broken, and we are determined to rebuild bigger and better than ever. The costs of replacing windows, floors and accessories, repainting, meals, gas, pet care, flights and temporary housing are daunting, and your help is greatly appreciated."

Warren K. Eng, M.D., is a CA-2 resident, University of North Carolina Hospitals, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.