CHRISTUS Southeast Texas - LiveWell

Hurricane Harvey's fury was no match for the CHRISTUS Southeast Texas Health System team's faith and perseverance. Considered one of the worst natural disasters in Texas history, Hurricane and Tropical Storm Harvey made landfall on August 25. Over the following days, the storm brought heavy winds, nearly 50 inches of torrential rain and flooding to the cities of Port Arthur and Beaumont. Even as the streets filled with water and the City of Beaumont lost its water supply, our doors remained open thanks to the dedication of our associates, physicians and community. OUR HOMETOWN HEROES The word "hero" has multiple definitions, but the one that stands out the most is "one who shows great courage." Throughout Hurricane Harvey's aftermath, we saw many acts of heroism. For example, when Jana Swearingen, a CHRISTUS Southeast Texas St. Elizabeth telemetry nurse, couldn't get to Beaumont from her home in Lumberton, she boated to work. "I knew my coworkers were working long hours, so I wanted to relieve them," Jana says. "I posted a request on Facebook to see if any nurses in the Lumberton area were available to come with me. We took three boats to cross three patches of water, clocked in and started working." Returning home wasn't an option until the water receded, so Jana stayed on the clock. Like Jana, many of our associates, including Keisha Brown, who worked a 48-hour shift in CHRISTUS Southeast Texas St. Mary's emergency room, worked around the clock. Keisha felt blessed to be part of the rescue effort and not only assisted community members at the hospital, but also helped answer phone calls from people who needed assistance in their homes and weren't sure where to find help. We cared for 3,000 patients during Hurricane Harvey and after the storm. More than 2,500 of those patients arrived at CHRISTUS St. Elizabeth, St. Mary, Jasper Memorial and the new emergency room at CHRISTUS Southeast Texas Mid County Outpatient Center for emergency care. Jamie Myers, who works in the CHRISTUS Mid County Outpatient Center ultrasound department, was on call when the storm began. She assisted the emergency room team with the care of many local nursing home residents and other community members who had been rescued from their homes. "The way the staff and doctors worked together was amazing," Jamie says. "It's hard to explain what you see, hear and feel in those situations. Some people were breaking down emotionally. They just needed a hug and for someone to say, 'It's going to be OK. We're going to make it.'" Despite being separated from his family in Houston, Levon Vartanian, M.D., worked for more than a week straight caring for patients in the CHRISTUS St. Elizabeth emergency room. Some of those patients needed care for serious illnesses and injuries. Dar Kavouspour, M.D., assistant director of the CHRISTUS St. Elizabeth Before, During and After the Storm christusset x.org | Winter 2017 HERE FOR YOU 4

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