Katrina like disaster and YOU are the health care provider

[Guest guest]

Here's a hypothetical situation for discussion. A large scale

disaster hits your community and you are the health care provider for

your family and the local band of disaster area survivors. What do we

do as healers to help people until profesionals take over (FEMA takes

at least 3 days to get active and as we saw with Katrina it can be a

lot longer before help gets to you)?

One of the biggest areas that stands out is in teaching and

helping people with sanitation. Latrine pits and soap have saved more

lives from disease than anything else. There are a lot of people who

have no idea what to do if the toilet doesn't flush or have a clue how

to set up a hand wash station without a pressurized hose. No soap?

Is there any plants or trees from which we can extract saponin

(soaproot comes to mind for you Californians), or an aromatic species

we can use to cut down on bacteria counts (rub hands with juniper

berries, etc.)? How about a basic high tannic acid skin wash prepared

to keep yourself clean with? Most people are familiar with witchhazel

but nearly everywhere in north america there are plants with a high

tannin content to make a similiar astringent wash. Oak bark and

yellow dock root are two classics for this.

I have an EMT bag filled with gauze, gloves, tape, lots of that

type modern first aid gear. I also have my bag of pet herbal remedies

and they both compliment each other rather well. During a disaster,

treating injuries is an immediate priority and within a few days

disease prevention becomes paramount. I don't keep stocked with

enough fire cider/complete tonic to keep all of the neihbors plague

free but I do have enough to keep the family going with the

prevenative dose every day for a while. Here is where our skills and

herbal expertise branches out into the community. Where are the

nearest willows for pain and inflammation? Do any of your neihbors

have medicinal herbs growing in their yards? Maybe they don't

recognize the rosemary bush as being valuable but you do and thus

someone they love may stay alive due to your familiarity with the

plant and knowledge of where it's at.

Disasters are a time of the community pulling together and

helping each other out. Herbalists are going to be valued members of

that community. Hmmm, kind of like the return of the tribal medicine

man/woman. It's a fundamental role in human group dynamics. We have

EMTs, first responders, paramedics, etc. to take care of problems but

when the system gets disrupted, as we have seen in New Orleans, we're

on our own for a while. What do you all think of this? What brews

and potions would be most valuable? How much healing salve do we keep

stocked up for others, just in case? What do you take with you on

a " housecall " or worse, if you have to abandon your home? Remember,

we're not looking at treating a sinus headache. We're looking at

treating trauma and such killers as cholera, pneumonia, influenza,

rampant skin infections (dead bodies in the water=staph infection),

not to mention major mental and emotional trauma. (Humorous thought,

how many gallons of Rescue Remedy would it take to dose New Orleans

immediately after the hurricane?)

Thought this would make for an interesting thread.