NSU to Provide Ongoing Medical Care in Gulf Coast

(Left to Right) Ronald Bekic, D.O. (College of Osteopathic Medicine - Family Medicine Residents) Adam Axler, PA-S (College of Allied Health - student) ---white t-shirt Samuel Perna, III, D.O. (College of Osteopathic Medicine - Family Medicine Residents) -stripped collared shirt John Rafalko, PA-C (College of Allied Health - faculty) Charles Lewis (College of Allied Health - faculty) Camille Bentley, D.O. (College of Osteopathic Medicine - faculty) Sean Leonard, Ph.D. (College of Pharmacy - faculty).

An interdisciplinary team, which includes six licensed health professionals and a student, left for Biloxi, Miss., at 6:00 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 23. The team has received temporary licenses from the state of Mississippi to work out of the First Baptist Church in Biloxi, which is a staging area for the American Red Cross.

These volunteers will provide long-term medical care to individuals in the Gulf Coast whose lives have been devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

Working with nonprofit organizations in the area, NSU medical teams will provide primary and followup care to hurricane victims suffering chronic illnesses, such as hypertension and diabetes, and acute injuries sustained during cleanup and rebuilding. The effort is being organized through the Office of the Dean in the College of Osteopathic Medicine and is being spearheaded by Camille Bentley, D.O., an assistant professor in NSU-COM. “We’re committed to offering assistance as long as there is a need, which could be anywhere from three to six months,” said Bentley, who is also the medical coordinator for NSU’s Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) Program. Bentley explained that all those departing with the first team have previous experience working in disaster areas and in third-world countries.

Each team will have a one-week rotation on site. Teams will consist of six to eight faculty members and students from NSU-COM, and the Colleges of Allied Health and Nursing, Pharmacy, Psychology and the Family Therapy program at the School of Humanities and Social Sciences.