To treat patients in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene last week, Doctors Hospital in Augusta realized they also needed to care for their staff impacted by the storm. The 354-bed acute care hospital offered a range of free services to their staff from food to child care so they would be better able to care for patients after the storm.
“Our goal was to ensure that our team had the resources they needed during this challenging time,” said Lindsay Black, director of communications and community engagement.
Recovery from the storm has been ongoing all week. At least 33 Georgians have died as a result of Hurricane Helene and nearly 300,000 customers remained without power Thursday, Gov. Brian Kemp said. With over a million customers without power at the peak, Georgia Power has reported 8,000 power poles need to be replaced
Doctors Hospital, one of several in Augusta, provided free meals, arranged for emergency housing for staff whose homes were severely impacted and started a day camp for children. Among other services, the hospital offered free gas for commuting employees and set up a pop-up grocery store with shelf-stable essentials, Black told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
In addition, the hospital called upon the HCA Hope Fund, a charity that provides emergency funds to HCA Healthcare staff who face hardships as a result of illness, injury, disaster or other situations.
The hospital also brought in outside counselors and partnered with community organizations, such as The Salvation Army, to provide their staff with hot showers and laundry services.
After the hurricane hit Augusta, the hospital called upon its emergency staffing teams to keep up with a surge in patient volume, Black said. “Most of the city and country experienced power outages, but our emergency generators kept us operational while Georgia Power worked to restore the electricity. We are now back on regular power.”
As the Augusta area continues to clean up from the storm, Doctors Hospital and Wellstar MCG Health have worked to keep up with the health care needs of residents despite limited staff and resources. Wellstar MCG Health Medical Center includes a 478-bed hospital, which has an emergency department; the 154-bed Wellstar Children’s Hospital of Georgia, which has a neonatal intensive care unit; and the Wellstar Georgia Cancer Center.
Some specialty services at the hospitals were closed after the storm, with a few reopening since. Hospitals are restricting visitors to one per patient, according to their websites, in order to conserve water and other resources.
The emergency room at Doctors Hospital is open and prepared for medical emergencies. The hospital reopened its radiation oncology, mammography, wound care and maternal fetal medicine services. Doctors Hospital cited “unprecedented damage caused by Hurricane Helene.”
Meanwhile, many of the Wellstar MCG Health Medical Center outpatient clinics that were closed after the storm have reopened.
“Many members of our community are experiencing power outages, water shortages, home damage and flooding as a result of Hurricane Helene,” MCG Health stated on its site. “Our hearts go out to those whose lives have been disrupted. We remain open and continue to care for patients through these challenges.”
Pitching in to help supplement health care workers in storm-damaged areas, the Georgia Board of Nursing voted last week to allow out-of-state licensed practical nurses and registered nurses to work in Georgia health care facilities during the emergency if they meet certain requirements.
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