MCHC Whitesburg Clinic reopens after flooding, still in dire need of medical supplies

"It’s such a catastrophe that if you don’t live here and if you live here and you didn’t see you wouldn’t believe it, because we’ve never seen anything like this in the history of our area"

WHITESBURG, Ky. (WTVQ) -The Mountain Comprehensive Health Corporation Clinic in Whitesburg re-opened its doors Monday after suffering major flood damage.
But, it’s far from being back to normal as the new concern is a shortage of much needed medical supplies

“It’s such a catastrophe that if you don’t live here and if you live here and you didn’t see you wouldn’t believe it, because we’ve never seen anything like this in the history of our area” said Dr. Van Breeding, MD, Director of Clinical Services, and Disaster Coordinator.

Mopping up the remnants of floodwaters from the past couple of days after flooding ravaged parts of Eastern Kentucky, the MCHC clinic in Whitesburg hit hard.

“Incredible day like we’ve never experienced such catastrophe but we didn’t have much time to think about it. Then we started cleaning immediately Thursday on the clinic and we worked out of a gym on Friday and then opened the clinic Saturday to one hallway and two hallways Sunday and we’re fully open today” added Dr. Breeder.

The flooding didn’t just damage equipment and furniture, but the loss of medical supplies and vaccinations; Dr. Breeding says was catastrophic making it even harder to treat the influx of patients who are flood victims themselves.

“The chemist analyzer is flooded, our x-ray equipment is flooded, ultrasound equipment is flooded, several of the tables and clinic exam rooms. Our entire billing area in downtown Whitesburg, it had 6 feet of water. It is completely destroyed along with a lot of our records and all of our computers; our computer system is down so we have to work by paper, so really we’re paper, pen, prescription pen and stethoscope is all we got to use right now” said Dr. Breeding.

Patients like 86-year-old Emma Amburgey, we told you Amburgey’s story of being rescued from her home in Letcher County as floodwaters trapped her inside.

“I just prayed to god I thought it was the end for me, I really did and I’m just so thankful to God that I got out of there safe” said Amburgey.

(RELATED ARTICLE: https://www.wtvq.com/they-looked-like-angels-woman-recounts-being-rescued-from-home/ )

ABC 36 ran in to Amburgey at the MCHC clinic as she was going in for a hepatitis shot, however she was unable to get that shot due to the shortage the clinic is seeing.

“They didn’t have any” said Amburgey.

“They didn’t have any right now, so they are going to call us” added her daughter, Kim Combs.

“We are in need of 5000 doses of tetanus vaccine, 5000 doses of hepatitis A, because of water exposure” added Dr. Breeding.

Dr. Breeding says they are doing what they can to help those impacted by the floods as they wait for more supplies to come in.

“We’ve taken care of things before, we’re going to have to do it ourselves again, what help we get we’ll use and we welcome that. We wish we had a lot more, a lot quicker but that’s just the way it is in Eastern Kentucky. A lot of times somebody else gets the bread and we get the crumbs, but we make the crumbs work and we’ll make it happen.”

Some of the supplies the clinic is in dire need of are:

•  IV fluids
• Tetanus shots
• Hepatitis A shots
• IV tubing
• Oxygen concentrators
• Oxygen tanks
• Nebulizer machines
• Nebulizer tubing
• CPAP Machines
• Insulin and supplies
• Glucometers and strips
• Constant Glucometers and readers like Libre and Dexcom
• Dental equipment
• Portable dental clinic trucks
• Portable X-ray machines and trucks
• Portable lab trucks
• Food trucks for patients and staff as most of our food supply and restaurants have been flooded and are closed
• Bottled Water, Gallons and emergency tankers
• Exam tables and equipment
• Desktop and laptop computers for Medical charting
• Suture equipment
• Sterile dressing and wound treatment supplies
• Disinfectant like Hebiclens and betadine
• Blood pressure cuffs and digital scales
• Thermometers
• Office chairs
• Cleaning materials

You can also donate in other ways.

To donate to MCHC Whitesburg Medical Clinic

PayPal WBMCHC

VENMO. @WBMCHC

Or by Mail.

MCHC FLOOD FUND

POB 10, Whitesburg KY 41858