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Abstract: 

After Hurricane Katrina, I was sent to a field hospital in Alexandria, Louisiana, at the former England Air Force Base. My task as a psychologist was to provide primary mental health care to the evacuees who would be arriving from New Orleans. The situation was worsening, however, and we began to hear of the demand for mental health professionals in New Orleans. A list of U.S. Public Health Service volunteers was developed, and two social workers and I were informed we would be detailed there, instead of remaining in Alexandria.

Keywords: FEMA, Oschner, martial law, U.S. Public Health Service, crisis intervention, suicide prevention, critical incident debriefing

Affiliations:  1: U.S. Public Health Service.