After 20 minutes it was apparent Paul would need medical assistance. Someone called an ambulance and paramedics soon arrived. They inserted IVs in his arms and we lifted him onto a stretcher for a quick ambulance ride to the nearby Ochsner Baptist Medical Center.
But Paul's ordeal unfortunately did not end there. His mother told me later she believed Paul did not receive proper treatment at the hospital, and that a doctor asked her if they had been conducting "an exorcism" in the church. Paul confirmed he heard it too. Flabbergasted by that comment, the family refused to have Paul admitted and drove 200 miles back to their home in Florida.
Paul says he stayed in bed for several days after his trip to New Orleans, with numbness still in his leg. He's still searching for answers. "I didn't expect to go to New Orleans and be the center of attention," Paul says. "I wanted to get the word out there about what has happened to me. I've seen every kind of specialist there is and no one has answers. It's been a long journey."
Paul Doomm (l) and family in happier times. Photo courtesy of Paul Doomm
Marylee Orr, executive director of LEAN, says there are many other Gulf residents searching for answer too since the oil disaster. "A lot of people have come to us with symptoms similar to Paul's, headaches, dizziness, blood in their stools, nosebleeds and neurological problems. There is a haunting and overwhelming need out there for more tests. But many people don't have the money to get them done."
People across the Gulf complain little is being done to address their immediate health problems. But if history of the Exxon Valdez spill is any example, it could take years for us to understand the human health toll from this oil disaster. We all hope that more people don't end up taking the long journey that Paul has just begun.
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