Minnesota doctor revisits Louisiana a year after Katrina

by Tom Crann, Minnesota Public Radio

After Hurricane Katrina in 2005, University of Minnesota physician Jon Hallberg went to Louisiana to relieve over-stretched clinics in the area. He ended up treating the health care "disaster" that existed long before the hurricanes hit. He recently went back to see what's changed.

In the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005, some Minnesota health care providers mobilized to head south and help out. Operation Minnesota Lifeline arrived prepared to provide health care for people displaced and injured in the storms.

What they discovered was a population badly in need of basic, primary care. Dr. Jon Hallberg is was one of the medical professionals who responded. He spent some time at a primary care clinic that sprung up in Lafayette, Lousiana.

A year later, Hallberg went back to the region to asses the impact this Minnesota team had on the region's health care. When he was there, he also caught up with some of people with whom he worked about what happened, and what lies ahead.

Hallberg shared some of his conversations with Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Crann.

Broadcast Dates

• All Things Considered, 10/11/2006, 4:50 p.m.