Joel Tsevat, MD, MPH, distinguished chair in the Department of Medicine and director of the ReACH Center, took groceries to the San Antonio Housing Authority on Saturday, Feb. 20, to help families facing food shortages in the aftermath of the unprecedented snow storms.
After making a donation to Feeding Texas, and encouraging many of his out-of-state friends and family to do the same, he wanted to do something more. So, he and his wife made a trip to Target, and while there was no water left to purchase, they stocked up on nonperishable food and other supplies to donate.
“It felt good to just do something,” Dr. Tsevat said.
With his career closely tied to community health, Dr. Tsevat said the storms highlighted an all too familiar pattern when crises arise.
“From our community work perspective, this kind of event really magnifies the health disparities that we have in our community. COVID did too. Some of these communities are so at risk, even in their normal day-to-day lives, so when a crisis hits on top of that, it really affects them so much more. People without means can’t go to hotel if power goes out, or even stay with friends or family, they’re stuck just trying to survive. I hope the community and the state rallies around this and says we can’t let this happen again.”