Gerardo Miranda- Comas, MD, Assistant Professor of Rehabilitation Medicine
Like many other Puerto Ricans, I had not slept well after September 20 when Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico.
In the days that followed, I joined a group of health care professionals in New York City to discuss how we could help. With the support of the New York State government, nonprofit organizations and health care institutions including Mount Sinai, and other smaller groups, I was on a plane to Puerto Rico three weeks later with volunteers from Doctors for Maria Relief, a team of physicians, nurses, nurse practitioners, and logistics personnel on a mission trip to assess, treat, and educate communities and individuals to help them manage ongoing medical issues and prevent possible disease outbreaks.
In Toa Baja, we helped in a clinic that was based in a school building, triaging patients to the appropriate service—social work, psychology, nursing, pharmacy—and providing medical evaluation for primary care, pediatrics, and rehabilitation medicine. In Caguas, we set up small clinical areas in community centers. Lastly, we were escorted to Utuado by the National Guard, who helped clear the path for us to reach several inaccessible mountain communities.
Snapshot of the devastation in Utuado
The medical necessities varied. We helped educate the communities about their increased health risks and distributed food, water, and water filters. Because of the lack of access to usual care, patients with chronic conditions were on the verge of, or had already suffered, acute exacerbations, which we treated.
Mental health issues were, and still are, major concerns, especially post-traumatic stress syndrome and depression. There was an alert for cholera, leptospirosis, Zika virus, dengue fever, and hepatitis A, among other contagious illnesses.
The devastation on the island was hard to perceive and understand before I traveled there. My trip helped me comprehend the needs of my homeland, and sadly, the severity of the damage. It will take some time for Puerto Rico to recover, but I have returned confident that it will happen.’’
By Gerardo Miranda-Comas, MD, Assistant Professor of Rehabilitation Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.