Vera H. Rigolin, MD, FASE

At the time I am writing this, the U.S. is recovering from two historic hurricanes.

Hurricane Harvey hit Texas on August 25, 2017 and made landfall three separate times in six days. This ferocious hurricane also affected Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Kentucky. Much of the damage from Harvey came from record-breaking rainfall causing massive flooding and subsequent damage to homes and infrastructure. As of September 5, 2017, Harvey damaged 203,000 homes, of which 12,700 were completely destroyed. Seventy deaths were reported. These numbers are likely to change once the damage is fully assessed.

Fast forward to September 6, 2017. Hurricane Irma loomed across the Caribbean as a category 5 storm wreaking having on Barbuda, St Martin, Puerto Rico, Cuba, and the Dominican Republic as well as the surrounding islands. On September 10, Irma, now as a category 4 storm, hit the western coast of Florida. The storm then made its way up the state of Florida and the neighboring southeastern states. As of September 11, 2017, the death toll of this storm was 31 people. Thousands were left homeless. The homes and infrastructure of areas such as the Florida Keys were completely destroyed. Electrical power has not been completely restored, which is a particular problem given the extreme heat and humidity in Florida at this time of year. Food and water are scarce in many regions.

Many residents of Texas and Florida evacuated prior to the storms and were thus spared the acute effects of these storms. However, many were simply unable to leave, including elderly individuals, women in late stages of pregnancy, and those too sick to be safely transported. This meant that others also needed to stay behind to help care for those unable to care for themselves. Much of this responsibility fell upon healthcare providers, first responders, and law enforcement individuals. Some hospitals evacuated their patients before the storms hit and thus were able to temporarily close their doors. Other hospitals, however, stayed open to help care for patients that could not be discharged and to assist other patients with medical needs during and after the storms.

The work did not end when the storms passed and the sun finally came out. Residents of Texas and Florida are now slowly returning to their homes and trying to resume normal lives. Many are finding their homes destroyed and possessions gone. Diseases associated with heat, lack of access to adequate food and water as well as the psychological aftermath are now coming to medical attention.

ASE salutes the healthcare providers, first responders, law enforcement personnel, aid workers, and all other individuals who placed their own lives in danger to help those in need during these two unprecedented hurricanes. Many of our members stayed in hospitals during the storms to care for patients even when their own homes were at risk of being damaged. Others responded by helping neighbors and others less fortunate. Now that many hospitals and clinics have re-opened, our members are helping residents in the recovery process. ASE is proud to be an association whose members are leading the charge to help the victims of Harvey and Irma stay safe and healthy. These members are the silver lining in the midst of hurricane madness.

Vera H. Rigolin, MD, FASE is a cardiologist at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Professor of Medicine at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, and is the current president of ASE. She specializes in echocardiography, valvular heart disease, and women’s heart health. She speaks fluent Portuguese, and has collaborated in the translation of three of ASE’s guideline webinars into Portuguese.