editor_Tierney.jpg (11241 bytes)The terrorist attacks of Sept. 11th and the thousands of lives lost at the World Trade Towers, Pentagon and in the plane crash in Somerset County, Pa., have shocked us all.

It doesn’t matter if we’re near or far from the crash sites or whether we knew the victims and heroes that died, we are all affected. And probably will be always. We can identify with the victims, they were just like us. They were fathers, daughters, best friends, financial officers, pastry chefs, pilots, police officers, firefighters, people planning weddings, expecting babies, hoping for promotions and looking forward to retirement. They just happened to be where horrible history was made.

As best as good can come from tragedy, the acts of heroism and endurance by the relief workers motivate us. In fact, they’ve called us all to action — volunteering, raising money, donating blood, praying, flying a flag, just saying hello to strangers in the grocery store.

Medical imaging equipment vendors are amongst those giving too, volunteering time, money and staff toward the relief effort. It’s unusual that I single out vendors in this column, but I think their donations are valiant and should be cheered. Their employees, you perhaps, should be recognized too for their help, in raising money and donating blood.

Companies such as Eastman Kodak, Siemens, GE, Varian, Philips, Toshiba, Hologic, Nycomed, Hitachi and Medrad have unveiled plans to donate from $10,000 to $2 million each to help in the relief efforts via the Red Cross and other agencies. Siemens further committed to match every dollar contributed by its employees worldwide.

Many imaging companies such as Kodak, Siemens and GE pitched in quickly to deliver emergency radiography products to New York, Washington, D.C. and Pennsylvania, as well as offering technical and product support to New York City and Washington, D.C. authorities. GE sent four trucks cross-country to New York City loaded with surgical C-arms, ultrasound systems, patient monitoring equipment, a dozen AMX X-ray systems, IT equipment and PACS, and CT parts. (For more details, see News on Page 16.)

I’m sure there are many more efforts, within our industry and outside worth noting. School kids across America have rallied penny drives. My son’s 2nd grade class raised money by selling handmade red, white and blue key chains. And a neighborhood yard sale donated all its proceeds to the Red Cross. Every little bit counts, and it is incredibly motivating to see Americans rallying together to help others in need.

We have great sympathy and empathy for the families and friends struggling to accept their loss and figure out how to go on. But beyond all of this, our mission needs to be getting back to our lives. In healthcare, it is healing people. But in our own lives, we need to give to heal ourselves. We need to help return our country to its vibrancy; only growth will carry us out of crisis. We need to go to work, coach our soccer team, invest our money, continue our charity volunteering, buy that new car we need. This will keep American marching forward.

We’ve all realized this is a good time for a reality check, too. Are we doing what we should be, in our job, our family, our friends? Are we living our true priorities? If not, change. But if so, stay the course and encourage everyone around you and make others feel good.

This tragedy has brought out all that makes America great, and we can’t forget that each one of us makes it that way.

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Mary C. Tierney, Editor
[email protected]