Katrina's Smallest Victims | 2006

A 2006 documentary chronicling the heroic efforts made by the staff at Woman’s Hospital in Baton Rouge in caring for the expectant mothers and fragile babies from twelve New Orleans-area hospitals in the days following Hurricane Katrina. Through interviews with doctors, nurses, and patients, this documentary covers: the impact of Hurricane Katrina on the hospitals in New Orleans; the decision made by Woman’s Hospital to coordinate the evacuation of the expectant mothers and sick babies from New Orleans the day after Hurricane Katrina made landfall; the difficult transport process; caring for the influx of new patients; providing emotional support to the new mothers and reuniting families that had been separated during the evacuation of New Orleans; working with local churches to provide shelters for the new mothers and their babies when they were released from the hospital; the evacuation of University Hospital and Charity Hospital four days after the storm; taking on more evacuees prior to Hurricane Rita; and the lessons learned that can help in planning for future disasters. Narrator: Jackson Ellison