HEALTH & SCIENCE

Sept. 11, one year later: A different kind of normal

Twelve months ago, the planes crashed. The world paused. Then, anthrax attacks amplified the panic. Some things have gone back to the way they were. Others changed forever.

By Victoria Stagg Elliott, AMNews staff. Sept. 2, 2002.

Howard Beaton, MD, chief of surgery and emergency services at New York University Downtown Hospital, the closest hospital to what was the World Trade Center, does some things differently now.

He never leaves home without his hospital identification, so he can prove he is a physician.

He also wears an American flag pin on his lapel, moving it from suit to suit as a constant memorial.

And he is aware that even the sunlight has been altered -- shadows from the twin towers no longer fall across his desk. "There are two huge buildings missing," he said. "I can't drive across town the way I used to get home. There's a lot more security around than there ever used to be. New York has changed."

Almost a year ago, the world went quiet. The skies emptied as air traffic was grounded.

Fears surfaced that cadaver organs headed for transplant and flu vaccine awaiting delivery (the shipping season had begun just a day before) might be lost, stranded on tarmacs. Medical conferences were cancelled or seriously disrupted.

A dark black cloud hovered over New York, raising concerns about air quality. New York physicians began reporting an upsurge in patients with asthma.

Meanwhile, blood banks were flooded with donations. Mental health professionals wrote more prescriptions for antidepressants and sleeping pills. Health-related charities saw dips in donations. Some doctors eventually reported a pregnancy boom.

Talk turned to bioterrorism. Physicians flocked to educational sessions about anthrax, tularemia and smallpox. Hospital disaster planning became important. [...]

Full text of AMNews content is available to AMA members and paid subscribers.

Access details

Join the AMA