Coastal Family Health Center, Inc. Wins National Health Service Corps Award of Excellence

On August 9, 2005, Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast region.  In the aftermath, the tragedy in New Orleans often overshadowed the effects of the disaster along the Mississippi Coast.  Before Katrina, Coastal Family Health Center provided primary health care to 30,000 people — over 104,000 patient visits annually.  Sixty-five percent of the patients seen by Coastal come from families whose incomes are below the poverty line.  This essential care was given in five permanent clinics, two school-based clinics and two mobile clinics.

Katrina severely damaged Coastal’s administrative center and destroyed two of its clinics as well as both mobile clinics.  They lost 40,000 patient records and their billing system.  Only one location escaped damage.  Sixty-six employees, including over one-half of the nursing staff, were forced to move away and were unable to return.  Many of those who stayed had lost their homes and cars.

Joe Dawsey, MPH, Executive Director of Coastal Family Health Inc., stated “I was completely overwhelmed when I went to look at the clinics.  The Admin office, where I had my office and all of our records, was essentially destroyed.  People were walking around aimlessly.  We had no power and no communications.  I found a working telephone in Mobile, Alabama and started trying to contact employees.  I was only able to get about six employees who had cell phones and had left the area.  I left my contact number with each person so we could set up a limited kind of telephone tree.  I visited all sites that I could get to and realized that no clinic could be used, and I had no staff to operate a clinic.”

Despite this adversity, Coastal was able to re-establish patient care within one week of the disaster, providing services in a double-wide trailer donated by an automotive dealer in D’Iberville and by working with the Children’s Health Fund in mobile clinics.  The next week they were able to open another clinic in a trailer donated by Islamic Relief.  Since then, they have operated out of space made available by churches, schools, and mobile vans.  By coordinating with volunteer groups and their national and community partners, Coastal was able to open a total of 24 sites to supply medical care in locations where other service providers were forced to shut down or evacuate. 

In their mission to bring health care to the community in the aftermath of Katrina, Coastal collaborated with several other groups to get much needed medical supplies, personnel, equipment and funds into those areas hardest hit.  AmeriCares and Children’s Health Fund both provided mobile medical clinics.  Children’s Health Fund also supplied a mobile mental health clinic.  Project Hope pledged one million dollars in pharmaceuticals and medical supplies, and it furnished Coastal with a fully operational temporary medical clinic in Moss Point.  Hands On USA, a volunteer organization dedicated to timely disaster response and relief, provided leadership and manpower during the cleanup and rebuilding efforts.

“The partnership was the only way we could establish care.  We didn't have buildings, equipment or staff.  I started working with the volunteer groups and coordinating worksites and locations.  At one time we had 24 clinic sites working when prior to Katrina, we had nine sites,” Dawsey said.

From September 2005 through December 2005, Coastal Family Health Center was able to provide health care to approximately 17,000 residents and evacuees.  Today, Coastal continues to offer medical and dental services, optometry, substance abuse treatment, and pharmacy services to folks along the Mississippi Gulf Coast who were impacted by the Storm.

To assist their patients and employees in coping with the disaster, Coastal partnered with Community Health Connections (CHC), a community owned family health center in north central Massachusetts. CHC’s mental health professionals traveled to Mississippi where they interviewed each Costal employee, as well as many patients, to confidentially determine their state of wellbeing and identify any needs they might have.  After these interviews, reports were sent to Coastal’s Executive Director with recommendations to help him address the situation.

Despite the hardships caused by Hurricane Katrina, Coastal Family Healthcare Inc. has remained committed to providing healthcare to people who need it, regardless of their ability to pay for services.  They adapted to difficult circumstances and overcame tremendous adversity to meet their mission.