Overburdened Systems and Dealing With Disaster

Hurricane Katrina made landfall on the Louisiana coast on August 29, 2005. Since 2005, there has been a dramatic increase in natural, infectious, and man-made disasters. It is more evident that nursing leaders and administrators need to be prepared for all hazards. The purpose of this article is to provide nursing administrators with a perspective of state-level leadership during a natural disaster and to suggest recommendations based on lessons learned during Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, Gustav, and Ike in 2005. These come from a state governmental public health and a state nursing school within an academic health sciences center.