News Release

Message to the UM SPH community on Hurricane Katrina from Dean Kenneth Warner.

September 7, 2005 letter from the dean of the University of Michigan School of Public Health

Like all of you, I am shocked and saddened by the frightening and depressing news reports and images emerging from New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. To the thousands of individuals who have suffered the incomparable loss of loved ones, whose lives have been disrupted and whose homes have been damaged or destroyed, I extend my deepest sympathies on behalf of the entire University of Michigan School of Public Health community.

Members of the UM SPH community are responding to the disaster in a number of crucial ways. The School of Public Health, the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, and the College of Engineering are co-sponsoring a panel discussion, “First Response to the Hurricane Katrina Disaster,” on Friday, September 9 at 3:00 p.m. in the Pendleton Room of the Michigan Union. Matthew Boulton, SPH Associate Dean for Public Health Practice and an expert on disaster preparedness and response, will represent SPH on the panel discussion.

Dr. Gregory Button, adjunct lecturer in the Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, is traveling to Louisiana as part of his work with the Center for Hazards Assessment, Response and Technology at the University of New Orleans to help conduct a hurricane response needs assessment. Health Management and Policy student Joshua Karnes, a disaster volunteer trained in shelter management, is currently volunteering at the Red Cross, assisting with disaster welfare inquiries. Josh spent this past summer working on tsunami disaster relief and rebuilding in Banda Aceh, Indonesia. Our student organizations are planning a fundraiser to aid the victims of the disaster. Dr. Eden Wells, a UM SPH Preventive Medicine Residency alumna and Medical epidemiologist at the Michigan Department of Community Health, is among those awaiting deployment to the affected area as part of the National Region 5 Emergency Management Assistance Compact.

These three are merely examples of the innumerable members of our community who are contributing their expertise, labor, and money to the recovery effort. If you are involved with the hurricane relief efforts, please let us know by contacting Terri Mellow, director of communications at twm@umich.edu or 734.764.8094.  Within SPH, we have begun to accept students who were admitted to Tulane to begin (or continue) their public health educations as non-degree students at UM SPH until such time as they can return to Tulane. Yesterday, we announced that the SPH dean's office has created a fund to support travel and other associated costs for a limited number of students who wish to work on Hurricane Katrina relief and recovery efforts during winter and spring breaks. If funds permit, we may be able to support a few students during the summer as well. We are initiating this effort in recognition that the needs of victims will require attention for months and years to come, long after media attention has waned.

Our school’s Office of Public Health Practice houses several preparedness-related programs; you will be hearing more about their specific activities related to Hurricane Katrina. I encourage you to visit the SPH website to learn more about related programs and events underway that involve members of our community. In the weeks and months to come, this school will be actively involved in responding to the catastrophe and in helping to repair the damage wrought by Hurricane Katrina.

Long-term lessons will come with time, but the impact of Hurricane Katrina forces us to examine the crucial role that public health can and must play in our society. This disaster points to the need for planning and organization, for public health readiness, for human talent, effort, and compassion. It emphasizes the necessity of good science and its effective application.

Contact: Terri Mellow, director of communications
Phone: (734) 764-8094
E-mail: twm@umich.edu