More News
“Patients’ basic needs were met with dignity during a horrific situation.” Amy McEntee, chief medical officer of Salud Para La Gente
“Patients’ basic needs were met with dignity during a horrific situation.”
In April 2023, record rainfall and strong storms in California flooded roads, cut power and damaged buildings, including health centers that low-income people rely on for health care. Americares responded immediately, contacting clinic partners throughout the state to learn what was needed to help communities and quickly restore access to health services.
To protect the health of people in flooded communities, Americares provided five truckloads of water to three food banks and delivered shipments of relief supplies and essential medicine, including tetanus vaccine and medication for diabetes, to clinics. Because many clinic staff also suffered damage from the storm at their homes, Americares provided emergency funding to support staff with transportation or other needs, helping to keep clinic doors open, as well as repair health facilities. In all, Americares provided more than $200,000 in aid to California communities.
“Support from Americares was invaluable by allowing us to house patients temporarily, replace medications and provide them with basics,” says Amy McEntee, chief medical officer of Salud Para La Gente, a clinic in Watsonville, California. “This type of partnership is incredibly important because it enables our patients to get the help they need when the need it the most. Patients’ basic needs were met with dignity during a horrific situation.”
“California was battered by repeated storms, upending daily life for millions of people,” says Mariel Fonteyn, Americares director, U.S. emergency response. “Because of our partner network, we were able to assess and meet health needs quickly.”
Recent News
July 02, 2024
Stamford, Conn. – July 2, 2024 –Americares is preparing to deploy a response team from the United States to Jamaica as Hurricane Beryl heads toward the island nation as a Category 4 storm with sustained winds up to 155 mph.
June 27, 2024
Stamford, Conn. – June 27, 2024 – Americares has awarded emergency funding to increase access to mental health and psychosocial support for over 8,000 people affected by the mounting humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
June 21, 2024
By the first day of summer, 135 million people in the United States and Canada are expected to face a life-threatening heat wave that will blanket the region from the Midwest to the Atlantic. Heat is the No. 1 weather-related killer in the U.S.; last year the Department of Health and Human Services estimated more than 2,300 people died due to heat-related illness.
June 20, 2024