Hurricane Michael damaged or destroyed a lot of the medical offices in Bay County, making it tough on people who need regular medical attention or emergency treatment for illnesses and injuries.
Some of those medical professionals received tips on reopening their offices and resume treating their patients.
“It’s helpful in that regard to give them the tools and the resources and the knowledge they may need, not only for their practice but also for their community,” Eric Blay, Regional Manager of Alabama/ Northwest Florida of Henry Schein.
Several health businesses organized the “Emerging from the Storm” symposium and was designed to help dentists, veterinarians and doctors of all kinds.
“There were some panels, there were some experts in a lot of different areas and they were able to not only make presentations and provide guidance but also do question and answer,” said Blay.
Doctor Jon Ward of Dermatology Specialists of Florida says gaining this knowledge will help the community remain strong, “the faster we can get businesses and services open for people, the more we can normalize their lives, the easier it’s going to be for them to stay in the area.”
Ward also says it’s time for these professionals to work together, “we’re all struggling with the same things and even though, you may say we’re competitors or what not, we’re colleagues at the same time. So really banding together and strength in numbers, hearing about the struggles other people are having and how they’re dealing with those struggles.”
“They do good by helping others and many of the people in that room we’re not only sharing their experiences of how their life was turned upside down, how their practice was turned upside down but how they reached out to others and helped them. So outside of corporate operations, it’s really people helping people,” says Blay.
The event was organized by Florida Dental Association, Florida Medical Association, Florida Veterinary Medical Association, Emerald Coast Medical Association, Bay Dental Society, Northwest District Dental Association, Henry Schein, Inc., and Henry Schein Cares.
