In the days leading up to Hurricane Helene, Dr. Lisa Kaufmann worked around the clock to make sure her North Carolina hospital system was as prepared as possible, stockpiling supplies like water, food, medication and equipment. But nearly a week after the storm’s ferocious flood waters destroyed so much of the western part of the state, Kaufmann, the chief medical officer for UNC Appalachian Regional Healthcare System’s three hospitals, said they’re now dealing with another crisis.
Forty-two hospital employees are still unaccounted for , unable to be reached by phone and possibly stuck in places that are inaccessible. Follow live updates on the aftermath of Hurricane Helene “We think most of them are probably OK,” Kaufmann said. “They just have no communications, but we don’t know and so, it is very stressful for everybody who’s working here in any capacity.
” While many health care workers are accustomed to stress, those in the disaster zone say it’s now being compounded by their new reality. Hannah Drummond, a registered nurse at Mission Health in Asheville and the chief representative for National Nurses United, the union that represents nurses there, said it’s been an emotional roller coaster. Follow live updates on the aftermath of Hurricane Helene “There are moments that we have where we’re able to cope and compartmentalize and focus on the patient, and there were moments where somehow we’ve been able to joke and laugh and then there are other.