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Health and Civil Society Projects Medical and healthcare services in Iraq have suffered through decades of neglect, sanctions and war. The healthcare system is in abysmal state and the United Nations Development Programme has highlighted major problems caused by a lack of health personnel and medicines, non-functioning medical equipment and destroyed hospitals and health centres. Health services have also been severely affected by infrastructure problems including degraded or disrupted electricity supply, sanitation and communications. In addition, years of dictatorship and sanctions have severely impacted on Iraq’s professional community, effectively cutting them off from developments in the rest of the world. The extent of this isolation cannot be exaggerated – not a single academic journal was imported into Iraq throughout the 1990s. Bringing Iraqi professionals back in touch with the world community is key in creating a real and sustainable future for the country. To help tackle these issues, KF Iraq has instituted two programmes:
Health Screening Programme Millions of children in Iraq are suffering with undiagnosed eye sight and hearing problems. While most of us take our basic healthcare needs for granted, in Iraq no state-wide screening system exists to detect even the most obvious defects. Often problems are not identified until it is too late for treatment. Sight and hearing tests for children commenced during the Adopt a School project, where a medical clinic run by a consultant ophthalmologist conducted eye tests on all pupils. Of the three hundred tested 35% were discovered to have eye defects requiring correction and 5% were found to have serious eye disease requiring referrals to specialist units. An audiometer was also procured and transported to Baghdad and a consultant audiologist recruited to carry out hearing tests on the pupils. This was Iraq’s first school health screening programme.
Extract from vision test report Following the success of the school screenings we decided to develop the Child Health Screen as a stand-alone project. We used two doctors, an ophthalmologist and an ear, nose and throat specialist to carry out a pilot screening project in a small, rural city outside Baghdad. A total of 1500 primary school aged children were tested during this pilot scheme.
Child Health Screening Programme An added issue that we identified during the Adopt a School projects is that where a child is diagnosed for treatment only around 15% of them are actually taken in to pursue this. Many parents do not understand that the problem is serious since their child seems to be functioning normally, and the costs of taking them to a hospital are significant. Where parents, especially in rural communities, cannot read or write themselves they do not see the implications of such problems. As part of the Child Health Screen pilot, therefore, doctors explained the benefits of treatment to the parents, gradually raising awareness within the community. Following the successful completion of the pilot, we are reviewing the results with a view to further expanding the scheme. Professional Development Programmes The on-going security issues in Iraq make travel to and within the country difficult and hazardous. Consequently, we have, to date, focused on bringing Iraqi professionals to the UK to develop their professional skills before returning to Iraq. The advantage of this is that visiting Iraqis are able to develop strong links with international counterparts and they gain a real insight into professional life outside Iraq.
Royal College reception for visiting Iraqi doctors In 2005, KF Iraq collaborated with the British Council and the Royal College of Surgeons to arrange medical placements for 15 doctors from different areas of Iraq in hospitals across the UK. The primary aim of the programme was to improve the doctors’ medical knowledge, but the visit also helped to form constructive relationships between British and Iraqi counterparts and between Iraqi doctors working in different parts of Iraq. Following the success of this pilot scheme, which was commended by the UK Chief Medical Officer, KF Iraq has brought over two further groups of Iraqi doctors for placements in the UK. Following discussions with the pilot group, the scheme was expanded to incorporate medical courses and conferences which allowed the doctors to further improve their knowledge and to increase their contacts. The scheme has been invaluable in improving the skills and the knowledge base of the Iraqi medical community. The involvement of doctors from all over Iraq ensures that the benefits of the scheme can be disseminated across the country. Furthermore, the scheme has provided valuable information on the real problems faced by Iraqi hospitals in terms of resources and organisations. After their return, the doctors remain a valuable resource for discussions on future projects to improve the state of Iraqi medicine. In addition to the doctor placements, KF Iraq has also worked on development schemes for the wider professional community. In 2008, KF Iraq collaborated with British-Arab Exchanges to bring a group of young professionals from across Iraq to the UK. The aim of this was to identify individuals from different backgrounds, ethnicities and religions with the will and potential to make lasting changes within their communities. During their visit, the group travelled to Northern Ireland to look at the peace initiative work carried out there and to meet with members of the Northern Ireland Assembly. They also visited Oxford briefly and spent time at organisations such as the BBC, the Department for International Development and the British Parliament. A copy of the report produced by British-Arab Exchanges of the visit can be accessed at: http://www.bax.org.uk/BAX%20Iraqi%20visit%202008%20report.pdf Following the success of this visit, KF Iraq is collaborating with British-Arab Exchanges again to bring across a second group of young Iraqi professionals in 2010. |
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