Aiding the Philippines
Nursing professor working with Filipino colleagues to mobilize aid to typhoon survivors
Dr. Cristina Hendrix, an associate professor at Duke University School of Nursing and president of the North Carolina chapter of the Philippine Nurse Association, is calling nurses, health professionals and community members to help her fellow countrymen after the destruction caused by Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines.
On Friday, Nov. 8, Typhoon Haiyan made landfall in the Philippines as one of the most powerful storms ever recorded on Earth. Wind gusts topped out at 200 mph with a massive storm surge that displaced at least 800,000 people, according to a report from the United Nations. The Philippine government estimated that more than 2 million people need food aid in addition to shelter and access to electricity, clean drinking water and medicine. However, it is feared that the full extent of destruction is yet to be discovered.
Hendrix said that most of her family was out of harm's way except for her brother, his wife and their daughter in their home on the island province of Leyte, which was hardest hit by the typhoon. In an interview with WRAL (see below), Hendrix characterized this area as rural and under-resourced. When she asked her mother why they didn't evacuate the area she was told "there was nowhere for them to go." Hendrix said that most Filipinos are accustomed to tropical storms but the magnitude of Typhoon Haiyan has never been experienced before.
Currently, Hendrix is collaborating with its chapter's parent organization, the Philippine Nurses Association of America (PNAA) to mobilize aid. The PNAA may also consider organizing medical missions. More 198,000 Filipino nurses live in the US and there is a strong effort to help their friends and families back home.
At this time, people can make donate for Typhoon Haiyan relief to these organizations: