Iraq/Middle East Updates

Although Dr. Thomas has been incredibly busy over the past few days in the nation of Iraq, he was able to send me a short email which I would love to share with everyone:

      "Our trip so far has been very sucessful. We have performed about 20 surgeries and lot of patients are being seen. We are supposed to met President Barzani on Saturday. All is well!"

Considering the busy time that Dr. Thomas, the KAMC team, and the rest of the doctors have had in Iraq, I was thrilled to have gotten an update. 

     After spending eight days in Iraq and another four in transit, it was easy to see that Dr. Thomas was both exhausted and energized from his time with the Kurdish people. Despite the mountain of paperwork that awaited him on his desk, Dr. Thomas was happy to sit down and speak with me about his latest trip to Iraq and the things that were accomplished.

In a few short days, the nation of Iraq will participate in the First Annual Joint ICS/Operation Hope & AHPBA Medical Symposium - the first medical symposium of it’s kind ever to be held in the nation of Iraq. Despite the obvious risks and dangers involved in traveling to a nation torn apart from the inside-out by wars, insurgencies, and revolutions, 10 Doctors will share their medical know-how along with the love of Christ with a group of people in desperate need of both. In addition to General Surgeons such as Dr.

A few months ago in the Kurdish region of Iraq, a young man was driving between two towns when he lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a post on the side of the road. Although the young man was experiencing a considerable amount of pain in his stomach, he was able to first call his father to inform him of the wreck and then contact a friend who was able to find him on the side of the road and take him to the hospital in the nearest town.

Dr. John Thomas and a team of medical and humanitarian volunteers completed a medical mission to the Kurdish region of Iraq in March.

“Our team arrived in Irbil Iraq and were met by patients who were carrying their medical records and requesting our assistance,” Dr. Thomas said.

This was the eighth trip Dr. Thomas and Operation HOPE have made to Iraq. Over the years, the focus has been to train Iraqi doctors and increase the medical capabilities and capacity in Iraq.

As many of our readers and supporters know, our founder Dr. John Thomas has been going to Iraq yearly for the past decade. What began as a small trip to show a handful of doctors how to perform basic laproscopic surgery has turned into an annual symposium or doctors from around the US dedicated to teaching Kurdish doctors how to care for their own people.