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In recent months, I have attended some very good presentations on human trafficking awareness. About a week ago I heard a presentation at the International Association of Forensic Nurses Scientific Assembly in Puerto Rico about trafficking and the role of the health care provider. I enthusiastically registered for this session because I thought it might shed some light on what health care providers– specifically nurses are supposed to do when they discover that their patient is a survivor of human trafficking.

What I did hear was what human trafficking is, the laws against trafficking in persons, how a survivors of trafficking might present or how they might behave in a clinical setting, and the many health risks imposed by this horrible crime.  The presentation was informative and at the same time, a little disappointing. This presentation, like many others I have heard, fell short of telling the health care providers about the next steps–what to actually do when a trafficking survivor is sitting in front of you and seeking help.

In some presentations it is recommended to call the National Human Trafficking Hotline operated by the Polaris Project and based in Washington, DC. I am a subscriber to the Polaris Project’s e-newsletter and read in the September 28, 2012 issue that the Hotline has fielded 60,000 calls since 2007. Astonishing! I wondered, though, how can the Hotline help me as nurse in Florida when the person on the other end of the line is several states away? To answer my own question, I called 888-373-7888 to find out.

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In recent months, I have attended some very good presentations on human trafficking awareness. About a week ago I heard a presentation at the International Association of Forensic Nurses Scientific Assembly in Puerto Rico about trafficking and the role of the health care provider. I enthusiastically registered for this session because I thought it might shed some light on what health care providers– specifically nurses are supposed to do when they discover that their patient is a survivor of human trafficking.

What I did hear was what human trafficking is, the laws against trafficking in persons, how a survivors of trafficking might present or how they might behave in a clinical setting, and the many health risks imposed by this horrible crime.  The presentation was informative and at the same time, a little disappointing. This presentation, like many others I have heard, fell short of telling the health care providers about the next steps–what to actually do when a trafficking survivor is sitting in front of you and seeking help.

In some presentations it is recommended to call the National Human Trafficking Hotline operated by the Polaris Project and based in Washington, DC. I am a subscriber to the Polaris Project’s e-newsletter and read in the September 28, 2012 issue that the Hotline has fielded 60,000 calls since 2007. Astonishing! I wondered, though, how can the Hotline help me as nurse in Florida when the person on the other end of the line is several states away? To answer my own question, I called 888-373-7888 to find out.

Health

By Ann Campbell

“You hoped it wasn’t going to be this bad.” FEMA administrator Craig Fugate said about Hurricane Sandy on CBS this morning. Yet Sandy gushed a 13 foot surge of seawater into Manhattan Monday night, causing extensive flooding and winds in excess of 100 miles per hour. At least 7.3 million have lost power due to the storm.

Early in the night, a building collapsed in Chelsea leaving an open-faced dollhouse view into the apartments. Power was preventively shut down in lower Manhattan to avoid more damage to the already flooded subway system. NYU Medical Center lost power and backup generators failed due to flooding. The hospital was forced to evacuate over 200 patients at the height of the storm. Fires destroyed over 80 homes in Breezy Point at the tip of Long Island. Wind whipped flames from a live wire to home after home through a long row of houses in this beach community.

Governor Cuomo tweeted this picture of Whitehall Station this morning.  It is unclear when the 108 year old subway system will be functioning again, but it is likely to be a gradual process. Closure of New York metropolitan airports remains, as the tarmacs flooded at the height of Sandy’s surge.

In the height of chaos, Governor Chris Christie praised Obama for his response to Hurricane Sandy. Long Island and New York City were declared major disaster areas.

It will take days for the subways to become operational, and for power to be restored. Overall, a measured and well-planned response carried, despite a much greater storm surge than anticipated.

If you need help, please use the following resources:

Find a shelter: http://www.google.org/crisismap/2012-sandy-nyc

Report Damage: http://www.nyc.gov/html/oem/html/nycsevereweather/damage_form.shtml

Volunteer to help clean up after Sandy: http://manasquan.patch.com/articles/volunteer-to-help-post-sandy-clean-up-efforts-a447682a for New Jersey and http://bayridgejournal.blogspot.com/2012/10/public-advocate-calls-for-cleanup.html for New York

Red Cross: http://www.redcross.org/

 

If you know of other volunteer efforts underway please post, and I will update this post as the day goes on.

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By Ann Campbell “You hoped it wasn’t going

Health

It’s not every day that one has a chance to see a true icon.

I was fortunate to be in the audience when feminist and activist Gloria Steinem addressed some 200 attendees at a women’s journalism conference yesterday  in Albuquerque, NM.

The 78 year-old Ms. Magazine  co-founder and life-long women’s rights proponent made it clear that although women have come a long way in the U.S. since the magazine launched 40 years ago, when it comes to issues such as reproductive rights, the role of women in the workplace, and societal attitudes, there is still a huge chasm to cross.

“We have allowed the welfare of the female half of the U.S. to be called a social issue, not a financial issue.” She wondered how we could allow equal pay to be labeled a social issue when it was the “single biggest economic issue imaginable.”

Reproductive freedom is also directly linked to the economy, and is the major determining factor in women’s lives.

“When and where women decide to have children is the basis for everything else they do.” Yet, many women don’t see that women’s rights have a direct impact on the economy. “Women feel guilty if they think reproductive freedom is as important as Detroit,” she said. It’s not in our collecive psyche yet but should be. “Women’s issues are economic issues and should not be minimized,” she said.

Steinem expressed deep concern about what will happen to the hard-fought gains that women have made should Mitt Romney win the White House. “The Republican Party has been taken over by profoundly anti-democratic, anti-abortion ultra conservatives,” she contended. “It’s so dangerous to have a party overtaken by extremists.”

She contended that Romney’s move to a more centrist position on women’s issues is only to court women voters, that he will not act the same way if elected. Pay equity resolution would also net a huge boost for the economy “We could easily solve our debt crisis if women were paid fairly. It would mean an extrea $200 billion going back into the economy every year.”

When it comes to health care, “we need to treat ourselves as well as we treat others,” she said. Changes need to happen in the voting booth, “the only place on earth where the least powerful are equal to the most powerful.”

She worries for the future of the women’s movement. “With the huge gender gap and with the most anti-women candidates in history, a Republican victory in November will mean that we may never be taken seriously again.”

When asked about passing the torch to future generations, Steinem responded that there isn’t just one torch, but rather many torches, carried by women of all ages, races, economic status and sexual orientation — with more torches waiting to be lit. Women’s issues are not social issues, she said, but rather “national and global issues” that affect everyone on earth.

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