Where to Now?

As we are learning, the real challenge for those displaced by recent "mass events" is acceptance and adaptation to their displacement. The question this conversation addresses is "How do we best support their adaptation in our communities where they have "placed;" in many cases, without their choice.

My sister has been living with me since her home was flooded in New Orleans. She is struggling with a multitude of questions about her future. She is experiencing the full impact of the loss of her friends and way of life. She is slowly coming to the conclusion that things will never be the same again. I see my role is first to make sure that her basics are met; shelter, health care, dental care, and the freedom to meet new people, since she is a very social being.

Beyond those basics, how do we, who are not directly affected, support those thrust upon us. They are, after all, Americans, not refugees! The answer is illustrated in recent experiences my sister had. Quite unexpectedly, my sister had to go to the emergency room of a local hospital in Salt Lke at 9:00 P.M. We were admitted by a rather stern, but efficient nurse. She indicated that the wait might be 10 minutes or one hour, it depended on new patients who had graver problems than my sister. I found myself starting to have feelings of prejudice and bias. Both of which I had no intention of putting up with.

Within a half-hour she was attended by a nurse and then a physician. Afterwards, my sister described both these individuals as outstanding in her treatment. Most of the time she was being attended involved conversation about her displacement from New Orleans. How they hoped she was doing well and let them know if they could help futher in her health care. The stern nurse turned into a warm person who suggested several pharmacies in the local area that were open at that time of night. I could hardly tear my sister away to get the prescriptions she needed at 11:00 P.M.

The pharmacist first doubted whether her health insurance card worked in Utah. But then he took about 15 minutes making calls to ensure her medication would be discounted. He succeeded, primarily because he said he wanted help and would not take no for an answer. My sister and he had a wonderful conversation about Utah and the people and what it as like to live there. As he talked, I recalled my suspicions and doubts when I first arrived. I also learned that most of the prejudices I suspected were inside of me! When we left, he said "I hope you decide to stay here for a while; who knows, you might like it!"

What's the answer to the question I posed in the title? We support those displaced with everyday acts of empathy, compassion, and love. Treat them the same as we would our own family members. What we might learn, in turn, is that we might benefit as much or more than them!