Post-Hurricane Katrina Infection Control Challenges and the Public Health Role at a Mobile Field Hospital

ISSUE: From September 9 through October 21, 2005, by request of the North Carolina State Medical Assistance Team through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, a public health team (PHT) provided support to a mobile field hospital in Waveland, Mississippi following reported cases of gastroenteritis and rashes among staff. The field hospital, located in a strip mall parking lot, included triage, ambulatory care, and a self-contained mobile trauma center. Most staff worked in tents, in excessive heat, and without requested handwashing facilities. Lack of infection control policies and procedures were an immediate concern in this setting.