Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) has completed a medical convoy to treat heart defects among children in Iraq.
At a total cost of $218,166 (QR 794,345), 35 open-heart surgeries were performed for children of internally displaced Iraqi and Syrian refugees at the Erbil Specialized Surgical Hospital.
Co-executed by QRCS's office in Iraq, the Iraqi Red Crescent Society (IRCS), and the Barzani Charity Foundation (BCF), the project is aimed at improving the health conditions and backing the medical system in Iraqi Kurdistan, by supporting the Erbil Specialized Surgical Hospital's Heart Center, reducing mortality rates among children with congenital heart defects, and alleviating the financial and psychological burden over their displaced and refugee families.
The medical convoy was implemented under an executive agreement with the host hospital, and the team included six cardiologists, four assistant physicians, eight nurses, two anesthesia technicians, two X-ray technicians, three administrative staff, and one accountant.
The Medical Convoys Program is a permanent international program of QRCS for the benefit of many countries every year. In 2022, QRCS deployed 10 medical convoys for the benefit of 29,978 patients in Sudan, Somalia, Iraq, Bangladesh, Jordan, and Lebanon. With a total budget of QR 4,890,200, the covered specializations included ophthalmology, general surgery, urology, orthopedics, cardiology, and pediatric cardiology.
Year to date, QRCS completed six medical convoys in ophthalmology, general surgery, urology, and pediatric heart surgery/catheterization, for the benefit of 3,230 patients from the displaced, refugee, and host communities in Iraq, Sudan, and Bangladesh.
QRCS plans to launch 20 medical convoys/camps in nine countries — Syria, Yemen, Palestine (the West Bank and Al-Quds), Niger, Somalia, Iraq, Jordan, Sudan, and Bangladesh. With an overall budget of QR 13,354,601, these projects will benefit 455,323 displaced, refugee, and poor patients, through numerous medical activities and interventions, such as: general surgery, eye surgery, ear surgery, cleft lip surgery, kidney transplantation, urology, spine surgery, heart surgery/catheterization, treatment of congenital deformities for children, medications, eyeglasses, medical equipment, and mobile medical clinics.
To help QRCS to continue launching medical convoys, donate online via the website (www.qrcs.org.qa) or mobile application (QRCS), call the donor service (66666364) or home donation collection (33998898), or send an SMS with “health" to the following numbers: 92552 (QR 250), 92869 (QR 350), 92092 (QR 500), 92556 (QR 750), 92246 (QR 1,000). Or you can make a bank transfer to the following bank accounts: QNB (QA21QNBA000000000850020196062), QIB (QA51QISB000000000110575190014), QIIB (QA66QIIB000010026100001002610), Masraf Al Rayan (QA18MAFR000000000011199980003).