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And to think I thought: “I barely have an hour left to live.”
“If I relive that moment, the first thing that comes to mind is what I thought just after the explosion: ‘I barely have an hour left to live.’” This is how Farid (44) tells his story as he stands proudly in front of his carpentry workshop near our Rehabilitation and Social Reintegration Centre in Sulaymaniyah.…
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To All Women Who Change the World of Everyone Around Them, With Their Energy.
They are our nurses, physiotherapists, psychologists, paediatricians, anaesthetists, gynaecologists, obstetricians, health promoters, coordinators, administrators, cooks, volunteers… But they are also our patients, both young and old, who face the consequences of war and poverty every day. They are strong and resilient. They commit every day to make healthcare available for all, because they believe in…
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“I have truly seen what it means to care for people without distinction or discrimination.”
The extent to which different cultures and communities co-exist here in Ashti can be encapsulated in the pronunciation of a single word: Sinjar or Shingal? They may have a different spelling and pronunciation – depending on whether we’re speaking Arabic or Kurdish – but both names refer to the same city in Iraq, on the…
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This is a Story of Care and Love
Asfandiar and Jzheyn’s tale is a difficult one. But it’s also a love story. And when could possibly be more appropriate than today to tell you about it? They met in 1997 at our Rehabilitation and Social Reintegration Centre in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq. Asfandiar was in the mountains gathering wood with some friends when he stepped…
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“But I Decided To Stay”
‘What price am I paying? I’m scared, always scared. I look at myself in the mirror and I feel older than I really am.’ Hedayat is 38 years old. He’s been working as a surgeon at EMERGENCY’s Surgical Centre for War Victims in Kabul for 14 years. ‘If you want to understand this country, just…
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“How Many Generations Did Afghanistan Lose to This Cursed War?”
“Salim just called me. He received a call from Sangin, one of Afghanistan’s most dangerous areas in the south of the country. A drone killed six people and three wounded patients are being taken to our First Aid Post. The last 48 hours have been terrible. After a period of relative calm, the area was…
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“We can go back home and have a normal life”
Miriam is a doctor from Nigeria. She works as general practitioner in the town of Port Harcourt, River State’s capital and largest city. When her daughter, Peace, turned two years old, she began to experience severe convulsions and cyanosis. Peace was hospitalised and diagnosed with a congenital heart defect, Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF). The only…
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“It has simply become normal”
In one of the few moments of rest that the hectic workload at the EMERGENCY Surgical Centre for War Victims in Laskar-Gah allows you, Shah Wali watches TV news about his country, Afghanistan. He listens to it, silent and serious. Shah Wali is 42 years old, he is one of the Afghan surgeons who has…
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Our Year 2018
Let’s take a moment to look back at what happened in 2018 and what we managed to achieve thanks to your support. JANUARY NEW YEAR, SAME OLD WAR 2018 began in Kabul with a large explosion near the former Ministry of Interior Affairs. After this, 131 wounded people, a huge number, arrived at EMERGENCY’s hospital.…
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“I always repeat to him: Don’t give up.”
Omar, 52, and his son, Nadim, 21, are shepherds from Bagram, north of Kabul. Parts of Nadim’s left arm and leg were amputated after he stepped on a landmine. “We live by working hard. Nadim is my only child. His arms and his work are essential for me. He has always been a tireless boy.…