Soldiers help Iraqi doctor see over 200 patients

Photo By Sgt. Armando Monroig | Soldiers help Iraqi doctor see over 200 patients - Patients fill a hallway as they wait to be seen at a clinic in Buhriz, Iraq, May 27. U.S. troops helped an Iraqi doctor see over 200 patients during the visit.  

IRAQ

05.27.2007

Story by Sgt. Armando Monroig 

5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment   

By Sgt. Armando Monroig
5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

BAQOUBA, Iraq – During her first visit to the Buhriz Clinic, Capt. Jan Rose saw an empty medical facility with only the clinic director present.

"We were told there was a physician that was kidnapped by al-Qaida and later executed," said Rose, a nurse with the 431st Civil Affairs Battalion, from Little Rock, Ark. "So, all the physicians were afraid to come back and work at that clinic. It was done as an example so the physicians would work with the terrorists – if they didn't (cooperate), they would be executed."

The sight was completely different during a visit to the same clinic May 27.

Although Iraqi physicians are still scarce in the Baqubah area, one female doctor was present to treat patients. Rose and other Soldiers had come to help her see the hundreds of patients, mostly women and children, who lined the hallway of the small clinic, waiting for medical care.

Rose estimates she, the Iraqi physician, Brigade Surgeon Capt. Henry Shih of 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, and medic Sgt. Sean Callaway, saw more than 200 hundred patients during the visit.

"For a country that has free healthcare, it is amazingly hard for people to get the healthcare they need, much less proper healthcare. So, we went there to assist the local doctors, not only with manpower and medical supplies, but also with knowledge," said Callaway, Troop B, 1st Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, from Fort Lewis, Wash.

Many patients arrived with skin irritations, since clean water for bathing is in short supply. Other patients were seen for infections, allergies, sore throats, colds, stomach illnesses, and malnutrition.

Rose worked side by side with the Iraqi doctor who, despite the history of threats against physicians, wanted to do her part to help the people of Buhriz.

"She's a young mother. She has two children. She could probably stay home or run away. She's there because it's her home. There's a lot of pride in that," Rose said.

"If people like her, young and enthusiastic, stick around, then everything is going to be okay. They're the ones who are going to rebuild this country."
Capt. Ben Richards, commander of Troop B, 1-14 Cav. Regt., said Buhriz would prosper because of events like this.

"Right now this is more important than the combat aspect (of our mission) in Buhriz," said Richards. "These kinds of operations improve quality of life. We look to focus on all the things that make life tolerable and acceptable to create a better future."

Lending a helping hand to the residents of Diyala is what it's all about, Rose said.

"As you look into their eyes and you can see that they appreciate what you've done; however small the effort was on our part, I think it's huge on their part. If we've made friends today and if we've made people think Americans are trustworthy – that we're here to help them – then it was a mission accomplished."

• Date Taken: 05.27.2007
• Date Posted: 05.30.2007 09:16
• Story ID: 10565
• Location: IQ