This article examines health concerns identified by Latinos who resided in the path of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans and Mississippi. Data were collected for this qualitative descriptive study through individual, open-ended interviews with 93 Latino survivors and evacuees in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Georgia. Findings describe health concerns and experiences, including hunger, environmenta...

In this issue of Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness, Anastario et al1 bring to light a vulnerability that is often hidden. Using sequential cross-sectional randomized surveys of trailer parks in Mississippi that were home to individuals displaced by Hurricane Katrina, Anastario et al documented a quantitative increase in gender-based violence (GBV) among a population living in pro...

As a nation, America is faced with the ongoing threat of terrorist activity from individuals and groups throughout the world and at home. In response to this reality, it is critical that steps be taken in the workplace to prevent acts of terrorism where possible, and be prepared to minimize adverse effects of terrorism that cannot be prevented. It is essential that traditional emergency prepare...

After Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast on August 29, 2005, thousands of ill and injured evacuees were transported to Houston, TX. Houston's regional disaster plan was quickly implemented, leading to the activation of the Regional Hospital Preparedness Council's Catastrophic Medical Operations Center and the rapid construction of a 65-examination-room medical facility within the Reliant Cent...

After Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast on August 29, 2005, thousands of ill and injured evacuees were transported to Houston, TX. Houston's regional disaster plan was quickly implemented, leading to the activation of the Regional Hospital Preparedness Council's Catastrophic Medical Operations Center and the rapid construction of a 65-examination-room medical facility within the Reliant Cent...

Taking a leadership role, the Illinois Department of Public Health's Division of Oral Health has helped to successfully integrate oral health professionals into the emergency medical response system in Illinois by raising awareness, building needed partnerships, identifying and garnering resources, and facilitating training, policy development, surveillance, and evaluation. Applying the same pr...

Shoukat H. Qari, DVM, PhD David M. Abramson, PhD, MPH Jane A. Kushma, PhD Paul K. Halverson, DrPH, FACHE In today’s environment of an increased need to demonstrate the value of the federal investment in public health preparedness and response (PHPR), it is encouraging to see the results of the research conducted by the Preparedness and Emergency Response Research Centers (PERRCs), which were fu...