Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Harvey Likely To Trigger PTSD For Survivors Of Similar Storms
For those who survived Hurricane Katrina 12 years ago or last August's flood in Louisiana, Tropical Storm聽Harvey could threaten聽their mental health more than their physical well-being, experts said Saturday.聽Hurricanes and other natural disasters are common in Texas and Louisiana, but that can make people more resilient or more likely to experience symptoms associated with post-traumatic stress disorder.聽Unnerving news reports can exacerbate this. (O'Donnell, 8/26)
Hurricane Harvey, which killed two people and devastated parts of Texas this weekend was causing some hospitals to close or evacuate because of flooding and still-dangerous weather. Baylor College of Medicine and its clinics closed on Sunday, as did all Texas Children's Pediatrics practices and Texas Children's Urgent Care locations. MD Anderson's Houston locations would be closed Monday. (8/27)
With more than a foot of rain falling outside and hurricane-force winds blowing on the hospital windows, Irma Rodriguez had all the problems that other residents of Corpus Christi, Tex., had on Friday night, plus two more: She hadn鈥檛 chosen a name for her baby. And it was growing clear he was not going to let something as trivial as a hurricane delay his grand entrance. (Wootson, 8/27)