ABC11 checked in with local family practices about how Helene has changed them over the last year.
The storm cut off these small mountain community hospitals and clinics scrambled to keep patients alive and healthy.
And for most people, that meant finding resources and getting prescriptions refilled.
In Black Mountain, just outside of Swannanoa, East Asheville Family Health Care became a lifeline.
"Folks losing everything, glasses, teeth, hearing aids, all of their medications. So that's sometimes, you know, multiple times a day. I know one lady, which you think is not that big a deal but her glaucoma medicine. She's like, if I don't get this, I'm going to lose my sight. And so I'm like, wow," said Dr. Brenda Fore.
She tells us her military background played a big part in her emergency response in those first days and hours, and organized airlifts and drops brought much-needed supplies and medications.
One year later, lingering mold has left lasting respiratory issues, water contaminants left skin irritation and burns and most of all, stress and trauma are fueling anxiety and depression.
"I can prescribe medicine all day long. I think more what these folks need are some cognitive behavioral skills, somebody to bounce these things off of and kind of develop skills that they can use to lower their cortisol, manage their anxiety without relying on a medication," she explained.
The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services tells me they are keeping mental health resources available to anyone who needs them in their program, Hope4NC.
Dr. Fore also tells us their provider volume has gone down in the year since the storm, but she has hope it can get better.
"You go through something this traumatic and you're going to go somewhere that's less traumatic. So you lose the volume of people to take care of folks. So now finding a provider is difficult or you know, we had an aging population of providers and so now you go through something like that, you think now's the time to retire. So now they have less opportunity to find providers in the area which, you know, can provide a great opportunity for new providers coming in," she explained.
Dr. Fore went on to say she is putting in a lot of effort in recruiting new doctors and nurses.
"I actively engage the local colleges to participate in trying to bring on folks that want to be in primary care and take care of a primary care population, hoping that I can, you know, make that not just here in the building, but we can meet you where you are if needs be. So that's my goal. I'd like to expand by at least three or four more providers," she explained.
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