Sailors, Marines help deliver new life at Fallujah hospital

May 4, 2008 at 2:00 AM
2 comments

Story by Cpl. Chris Lyttle

FALLUJAH, Iraq (April 30, 2008) – A city once ravaged by war is now evolving daily into a modern Middle Eastern society. With its growing population and fast-paced reconstruction, the city of Fallujah shows the need for newer technology, facilities and health care in order to stay current with its development.

To facilitate this growth process, the Marines and Sailors of 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 1, helped Physicians from the Fallujah Medical Hospital obtain vital and advanced medical supplies as part of the battalion’s civil affairs program here, April 30.

Marines from 3^rd Bn., 6^th Marines delivered a large number of life saving equipment doctors need to perform surgeries and treat patients.

“The equipment increases the care capacity and widens (the doctors’) scope of practice,” said Navy Lt. Cmdr. Timothy J. Phillips, RCT-1 regimental surgeon.

“Now there are cases the Iraqi doctors can handle themselves because they have the tools necessary to do it. They’ll have to turn less people away,” he said. This means less Iraqis will rely on Coalitions forces for medical needs.

The regimental civil affairs group and embedded provincial reconstruction teams worked with Fallujah City Council members for six months to develop a plan based on what doctors expressed as a high priority for Fallujah Medical patients. With the new equipment more babies can be delivered properly, doctors can perform more surgeries and this winter, children with breathing problems can be treated.

“They will double their capacity to deliver babies, double their capacity to perform surgeries and it will also increase their capacity to handle a mass casualty or significant trauma situation because of the surgical stuff delivered today and the increased (operating room) capability,” Phillips said.

He added that the planning and approval was the most intricate part of the project, which ensured the Iraqis received the necessary equipment.

“(Coalition forces and Iraqi physicians) sat down and said, ‘Where are we lacking and what can we do to improve our situation,’” said Phillips.

The hospital staff and coalitions doctors also evaluated the skills and capabilities of the Iraqi physicians they had and the space the hospital had for the equipment they need so when it arrived they could put it all to use immediately. “That’s where pre-planning and good working relationship between Coalition forces and Iraqi physicians came in so we could find out what was needed,” said Phillips.

Navy Lt. Van A. Willis II, 3rd Bn., 6th Marines battalion surgeon, also played a role in the planning and delivery of much needed medical supplies. Willis is the battalion’s medical liaison to the Fallujah doctors and this delivery offered another opportunity to build upon a good working relationship. This foundation will be called upon in the future for more medical projects to assist the local doctors to care for the people in Fallujah.

080430-3BN6MAR-LYTTLE-003lo

“Today offers us the opportunity to help our Iraqi neighbors, to build a good rapport with the local community and establish a good working relationship with them,” Willis said. “Today will help facilitate future projects with the goal of helping the citizens of Fallujah build confidence and trust in their local health care system. The citizens of Fallujah have great health care providers who are competent and skillful. With today’s new additions to the hospital, Iraqi doctors will be able to provide even more care to their community. I’m just glad 3/6 had this opportunity to play a role in expanding medical care to the citizens of Fallujah.”