Many EMS responders have called the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians (NAEMT) asking how they can help other emergency responders and victims of Hurricane Katrina.

NAEMT recognizes the importance of providing emotional, financial and professional support to the EMS crews in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida, and issues the following responder guidelines:

1. Do not self-dispatch to the scene.
In accordance with the position of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, NAEMT urges EMS responders not to self-dispatch to areas affected by Hurricane Katrina without being requested and lawfully dispatched by state and local authorities under mutual aid agreements and the Emergency Management Assistance Compact. Coordination under the National Incident Management System is impossible when EMS responders are not part of an organized response team.

2. If you are physically able to assist on site, become part of an organized response effort.
There is a need for EMS professionals to assist with medical care of hurricane victims and to act in a support capacity. If you are able to donate your time, energy and expertise on the scene, please contact on or more of the following organizations:
• NAEMT PHTLS Division – needs help at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee - http://www.naemt.org/PHTLS/pressGallery/hurricane/
• US Dept. of Health and Human Services - https://volunteer.hhs.gov, 1-866-KAT-MEDI
• US Surgeon General’s Office - www.hospitalreliefefforts.org
• Firefighters should coordinate their efforts through their local fire department.
 
Many refugees have been relocated out of the Gulf area. Check with your county health department, local fire department and/or state emergency management office to identify the need for medical assistance in your community.

The volunteer situation and needs in the affected areas are constantly changing. Please check updates on www.naemt.org for the latest information.

3. If you are traveling to the site, make sure that you are protected.
Follow CDC's Interim Immunization Recommendations for Emergency Responders Responding to Hurricane Katrina: Required immunizations include:
1. Tetanus and diphtheria toxoid (receipt of primary series, and Td booster within 10 years); and
2. Hepatitis B vaccine series for persons who will be performing direct
patient care or otherwise expected to have contact with bodily fluids.

See www.cdc.gov for complete information, as these requirements may change.

4. If you have housing available for EMS personnel and families whose homes were destroyed by the hurricane and flooding, register your information with NAEMT.
Many EMS workers and their families in the areas affected by the hurricane have lost their homes. NAEMT has created a database of housing opportunities for these people while their homes and communities are rebuilt. 

If you have the ability to temporarily house an EMS worker and his/her family, please download a form to submit your information and the specific details and requirements of what you can offer  (Form in MS Word,  Form in pdf ). NAEMT needs people from around the country to respond immediately.

NAEMT will also be creating a database of EMS workers from the affected areas who are seeking housing. These people must be currently active and involved in EMS work as EMTs or paramedics.  NAEMT will collect information from these people, conduct a background check and then match them with volunteers who available housing.

5. If you are able to donate money, make a contribution to the NAEMT EMS Rescuer and Relief Fund.
NAEMT established the EMS and Rescuer Relief Fund after 9-11 to collect money for the families of the EMS workers who died responding to the terrorist attacks. That fund remains operational, and funds collected at this time will be distributed to EMS responders affected by Hurricane Katrina.

NAEMT urges anyone who is able to make a financial donation to send a check to the NAEMT EMS and Rescuer Relief Fund c/o the NAEMT Headquarters, PO Box 1400, Clinton, MS 39060-1400. Credit card donations may be made online at http://relief.naemt.org/donate and by calling (800) 34-NAEMT. Individual and corporate donations are welcome. NAEMT has pledged to cover the operational costs of the fund, permitting all donations to the fund to be distributed in their entirety.

The money collected will be made available to EMS professionals who need help re-building their lives in the wake of the hurricane. No decisions have been made yet as to precisely when and how the funds will be disseminated. After 9-11, NAEMT disseminated $107,553 to assist the families of EMS workers who died in the line of duty while responding to the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center.

6. Offer support by email to NAEMTResponds@aol.com.
Because many EMS responders in the hurricane-affected areas are working around-the-clock under very stressful conditions, and because many of them also have suffered great personal losses, NAEMT urges EMS responders to offer emotional support, job offers etc. through any communication methods available.

Electronic messages of support may be sent c/o NAEMTResponds@aol.com. These messages will be posted on the NAEMT Web site (www.naemt.org), as well as forwarded to NAEMT Governors in the affected states for dissemination to local EMS responders. EMS responders are urged to use NAEMT communications channels to keep in contact with their EMS brothers and sisters affected by the hurricane.