“With natural and man-made disasters becoming more frequent and increasing in cost of recovery, it is increasingly recognized that community resilience is critical to reduce long recovery periods. The need for community health centers to effectively prepare and work together with other community stakeholders has never been more important.” Louisiana Public Health Institute
The Louisiana Public Health Institute (LPHI) has proudly served the residents of Louisiana for nearly 25 years and is a fixture in Louisiana’s responses to public health needs in the wake of events like Hurricane Katrina and the Gulf Coast oil spill.
As natural and manmade disasters and public health crises become more common, community health centers (CHC) are on the frontline to care for the communities involved, keeping people healthy and connected to resources. They are uniquely positioned to harness community strengths and resources, identify community vulnerabilities, and support the development of broader community resilience approaches.
In the wake of these disasters, using a co-created toolkit and other materials, PCDC and LPHI provided dozens of primary care organizations in the Gulf Coast region with training and technical assistance on a wide variety of topics including HIV Prevention, care-transition coaching and emergency response capacity and community resilience. These resources and training enable CHCs to provide the highest quality health services to patients, no matter the operating environment.