Lack of stenographers, equipment delaying Katrina autopsy reports

[Judi Lynn]

Lack of stenographers, equipment delaying Katrina autopsy reports
11/2/2005, 3:44 p.m. CT
By MARY FOSTER
The Associated Press

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Doctors at the morgue in St. Gabriel have completed 500 autopsies on bodies recovered following Hurricane Katrina, but officials or families hoping to obtain the results have a long wait ahead of them.
(snip)

Minyard's staff was cut by two-thirds in the wake of the hurricane, he said, including the clerks who would normally type up the reports.

"Rightfully so," Minyard said. "The city doesn't have money to pay people. But at this point no one else has come forward to furnish any equipment of people so it's going to be a long, long process."

Getting equipment and staff has been a difficult process, said Minyard, who blamed the Federal Emergency Management Agency for the delays. He said it took seven weeks to get a regular phone at the makeshift morgue — and that it was obtained only when someone removed one from an office in Baton Rouge and brought it to St. Gabriel.
(snip/...)

http://www.nola.com/newsflash/weather/index.ssf?/base/news-20/1130957642158801.xml&storylist=hurricane

[corkhead]

1. yeah, all the stenographers are in the WH press corps.

[Greeby]

2. Want a stenographer?

I hear Judy Miller is in the job market ;)

[area51]

16. sweeeeeeet. (n/t)

[napi21]

3. It's sad that there are so many new bad stories about Shrub, that

this story has dropped below the news radar!

Everyone needs to know that things are not getting better in the hurricane ravaged areas! They need to realize that the new Brownie replacement doesn't seem to be doing any better!

I just don't know how to get it out there again! It's NOT going to be able to compete with Libby, the Senate shut down, Shrub's bad poll numbers, DeLay's indictment mess, Abramoff.......

Where does it stop?

[HockeyMom]

4. Another DEAD skill

I learned stenography (Gregg, not ABC's) in HS a billion years ago. Yes, I still know how to take and transcribe it. PAY me and I will go there and work.

[koopie57]

5. I'm a medical transcriptionist

and work for a group of pathologists. If there was a way I could get access, I would be willing to spend some time typing those reports. I wonder how it could be done?

[uppityperson]

9. More from the article that might be of interest?

A spokesman for the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals said the agency has been trying to meet the needs of the hurricane morgue.

"We are trying to work with him to get all the things he needs," spokesman Bob Johannessen said. "Part of the problem is that he's never come out and said exactly what he needs. It's been piecemeal."

Johannessen said the DHH was unaware of the lack of equipment and personnel to transcribe autopsies, but said the department would try to remedy it.

http://www.dhh.state.la.us/

[koopie57]

10. I had been thinking about this and mentioned it at work today

it sounded funny at the time, especially about the stenographer stuff. Anyway, one of our pathologists is military and she said that the military can send dictation through the phone, through the internet, dictate into a recorder and play it over the phone and if worse came to worse pack the tapes up and send them around the country. Even she, a conservative, said something didn't sound right.

[uppityperson]

11. Like maybe they don't want outsiders involved?

odd, a whole bunch of stuff is odd these days.

[koopie57]

13. yep

I'm thinking that too many people died of gunshot wounds, etc. Or that TOO many people died. Anyway, I'll be looking for your posts in the future. Kinda fun to meet someone like you.

[koopie57]

14. delete

double post .. sorry

[Joanne98]

6. Are there still 2500 missing children?

[daleo]

7. Given the circumstances, this shouldn't be a city responsibility

"...Minyard said. "The city doesn't have money to pay people. But at this point no one else has come forward to furnish any equipment of people so it's going to be a long, long process.""

The federal government should be picking up the tab - it was declared a federal disaster area.

On edit - Of course, Bush may not be in a hurry to have this work done.

[Up2Late]

8. I'd love to make a pithy comment, but this...

...situation just makes me so Angry.

*, Jeff Sessions and Trent Lott probably can't understand why all those "Minority" people are so eager to find out how their elderly Mother's and Father's died. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr:banghead: :mad:

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

12. Tragedy on an epic scale.

[Judi Lynn]

15. Whoops. Wrong thread. (Embarrassment)