One of the highest priorities identified by the respondents was financial assistance to rebuild their practices.

"Although the plans elicited from respondents are subject to change based on many factors as the Gulf Coast recovery progresses, programs to address identified physician needs in the aftermath of the storm may give confidence to displaced physicians to return. Additional follow-up assessments may be useful in determining whether the identified patterns of physician relocation persist or change over time, the authors conclude.


Post-Katrina Death Rate Soars

The journal also reports that the post-Katrina death rate in New Orleans shows significant increase, demonstrating the need for intervention and improved reporting. The death rate between January and June 2006 in the greater New Orleans area was nearly 50 percent higher than pre-Hurricane Katrina rates, due in part to a compromised public health infrastructure after Hurricane Katrina, which hit the Gulf Coast on August 29, 2005, according to a study that also appears in Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness.

The inaugural issue of the journal covers many vital topics from recent disasters including Hurricane Katrina, the tsunami in Indonesia and the Oklahoma City bombing. Highlighted studies include, "Excess Mortality in the Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina: A Preliminary Report" and "Characteristics of Physician Relocation Following Hurricane Katrina."

Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness was created by the AMA to promote public health preparedness and the science of disaster medicine. The journal will serve as a unifying resource for all health care and public health professionals, the emergency management community and others in the public and private sector who are essential to emergency planning and response.

"The events this decade -- September 11 and subsequent anthrax attacks, the tsunami in Indonesia, the earthquake in Pakistan, Hurricane Katrina, SARS and the fear of pandemic influenza -- remind us that health care and public health professionals must be coordinated and prepared to respond to emergency situations," said Dr. James.

The journal, scheduled to be published twice in 2007 and quarterly beginning in 2008, will showcase research and analysis relevant to disaster medicine and public health preparedness from global experts in all specialties of clinical medicine, epidemiology, public health and disaster management. The journal also will feature best practices, guest commentary from global leaders, and special updates on key topics including public health law and ethics, advocacy, policy and education.

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