RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Rediscovering Community—Reflections After Hurricane Sandy
JF The Annals of Family Medicine
JO Ann Fam Med
FD American Academy of Family Physicians
SP 571
OP 573
DO 10.1370/afm.1585
VO 11
IS 6
A1 Sharon See
YR 2013
UL http://www.annfammed.org/content/11/6/571.abstract
AB Hoboken, New Jersey, is a town of 50,000 residents located across the Hudson River from New York City. Most of Hoboken’s infrastructure was compromised during Hurricane Sandy as a result of flooding and power outages that rendered many businesses inoperable, including all of the pharmacies in town. Despite a focus on emergency preparedness since Hurricane Katrina and 9/11, there were no contingencies in place to facilitate and assess the medication needs of the community in the event of a natural disaster. This essay describes how the author rediscovered the meaning of community, and through working with colleagues in other health care disciplines and non–health care volunteers, provided care to patients in suboptimal circumstances.