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Tons of donated medical texts sent to war zones in Afghanistan and Iraq

The goal is to help establish medical libraries and expand existing collections in conflict regions.

By John McCormack, amednews correspondent — Posted Aug. 25, 2008

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Many medical students in Afghanistan live in mud-brick huts with no running water, no indoor plumbing, no utilities -- and no access to the Internet.

In this setting, they must learn medicine the old-fashioned way: by reading textbooks.

Unfortunately, there's a catch.

Medical textbooks are hard to come by in their war-torn country.

"While Afghanistan was under the rule of the Taliban, they [forbade] any image of any part of the human body. Although they allowed some of the medical schools to remain open, any text or literature with illustrations was confiscated and burned," said Lt. Cmdr. Bradford S. Volk, MD, of the U.S. Navy Medical Corps.

As a result, said Lt. Cmdr. Bruce Deschere, MD, "teaching anatomy and clinical skills becomes quite difficult." Dr. Deschere, of the U.S. Navy Medical Corps, serves as a medical mentor at Herat Regional Military Hospital in Afghanistan.

To meet the need for medical literature, the Medical Alumni Assn. of the University of California, Los Angeles, in April 2007 launched a "books without borders" program. It is designed to bring medical books to Afghanistan and Iraq.

This June, the initiative became known as Operation Medical Libraries, a project that continues to collect and distribute current medical textbooks and journals through a partnership with American medical schools, hospitals, physicians and the U.S. military.

So far, about 13 tons of medical textbooks and journals have been sent to Afghanistan and Iraq.

The goal is to help create permanent medical libraries and support expansion of existing collections in conflict regions where resources are scarce. UCLA, and both the San Diego and Irvine campuses of the University of California are leading the initiative.

Stateside doctors and military physicians serving abroad are pitching in. And the program has support from many UCSD alumni, including internist Khaled Hosseini, MD, who left Afghanistan as a boy and is author of the acclaimed novel, The Kite Runner. The effort is popular with many graduates, regardless of any connection to the countries being served.

"It's a great program because it is pretty effortless for the alumni to get involved, yet they know they are doing something meaningful by providing the texts to a country in crisis. They are thrilled to be a part of this," said Valerie Walker, director of the UCLA Medical Alumni Assn.

Many health professionals benefit

In addition to being used by medical schools, the texts are going to nurses, nursing students, physical therapists, pharmacists and laboratory technicians to help them gain the knowledge needed to treat patients more effectively, Dr. Volk said.

The donated books are having a significant impact on medical education and the quality of care delivered in Afghanistan, officials said. Enthusiasm for the project is expected to propel it well beyond its humble beginnings, organizers said.

The program initially provided books only to Kabul Medical University, Afghanistan's largest medical school. Dr. Volk identified Kabul as a school in need of these materials shortly after he arrived in Afghanistan last September.

"After a tour and discussion with Chancellor [Obaidullah] Obaid, we realized a great need for medical textbooks. Soon after, I contacted many different organizations that specialize in donating medical textbooks to developing countries," Dr. Volk said. "By far the greatest response was from Operation Medical Libraries."

Although response to the program has been stronger than expected, the need for medical textbooks in Afghanistan is enormous, Walker said. After supplying Kabul and other medical schools with books, there will be a need for medical literature at military and civilian hospitals.

"I thought they might cry uncle and say they had enough. But the need is still great," UCLA's Walker said. "There are bases all over both Iraq and Afghanistan, and it is our mission to serve any country that is in conflict."

Other physicians and groups in the U.S. have donated medical texts to Afghanistan and Iraq. For example, a Missouri emergency physician who helped rebuild Iraq's public health system organized an effort in 2004 that sent medical journals and books to several hospitals in Tikrit, Iraq.

Shipping challenges

For Operation Medical Libraries, the challenge has not been getting medical school alumni to donate enough books but finding a way -- and the money -- to get the gargantuan amount of texts shipped overseas, said Bill Proffer, a UCSD alumnus who works in San Diego for Science Applications International Corp.

Proffer is working to have the books collected and then repackaged into standard 50-pound boxes before being sent to various military doctors in the receiving countries.

"These are very heavy, very big books," he said. "The logistics of getting the books over there has been the difficult aspect of this program."

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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

How you can help fill the need

Operation Medical Libraries is seeking more donated medical books and journals to send to Afghanistan and Iraq. Contact Valerie Walker at 310-794-4025. More information also is available at the group's blog (link).

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