A video documenting the disaster relief efforts of University of North Carolina students and faculty in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina was selected for screening recently at the annual Carrboro (N.C.) Film Festival (www.carrborofilmfestival.com). 

"Katrina Spring" was one of 27 short films, chosen from about 100 entries, to be shown during the five-hour festival of short films that played to a full house at the Carrboro Century Center on Nov. 18.

Photo by Gary Black - UNC student working in medical clinic

By spring 2006, 1800 people on the Gulf Coast had lost their lives as a result of one of the three most intense storms in U.S. history.

Volunteers from around the country were eager to offer help where it was most needed.  To that end, faculty from the UNC Schools of Public Health, Nursing and Social Work partnered with a church-based disaster relief organization in Mississippi. Under the leadership of Cheryll D. Lesneski, DrPH, and Beth Lamanna, RN, MS, a group of about 50 faculty, students and community members spent a week in March 2006 serving in medical clinics, community work crews, a distribution center and a food kitchen.

Lesneski, clinical assistant professor in the Public Health Leadership Program at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, and Lamanna, clinical assistant professor in the School of Nursing and adjunct at the School of Public Health, encouraged students and faculty to model an interdisciplinary approach to health care that could be used in future disaster recovery efforts. 

Photo by Gary Black - students learning to use GPS data collection devices

Anna Lair, a nursing student, agreed.  "No one [at the medical clinic] is as simple as their presenting case. No one is only a roof needing to be fixed or a blood pressure medication needing to be filled.  We are talking here about the emotional bonds of community being ripped apart.  This will take a long time--a generation or two--to repair."

Lesneski and Lamanna were recognized in February 2006 with a Chapel Hill "Village Pride" Award for organizing the trip that would provide care for displaced persons in Ocean Springs, Biloxi and Long Beach, Miss.

Photo by Gary Black - students interviewing hurricane victims about their needs

Gary Black, health communication specialist with the Mecklenburg County (N.C.) Health Department, was invited by the UNC faculty to accompany the group and document the nature of their work. He and colleagues recorded, scripted and edited the video documentaries.

"We have dreams of Sundance!" Lesneski said, grinning. "Seriously, we are very proud about being chosen for the Carrboro Film Festival--and glad that these stories will be shared with a wider audience."

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"Katrina Spring" and "Katrina Recovery" can be viewed on the Mecklenburg County Health Department Web site.  

School of Public Health contact: Ramona DuBose, director of communications, (919) 966-7467 or ramona_dubose@unc.edu.