Joint Bayat Foundation-Plasticos Foundation Teams Tour Afghan Hospitals, Share Key Digital Medical Library Resources, and Lay Groundwork For Future Medical Training and Treatment Missions
Kabul, Afghanistan—December 18, 2018—The Bayat Foundation (www.bayatfoundation.org), Afghanistan’s largest private Health, Education and Social Development Organization, announced today that it has embarked on initial discussions with the Plasticos Foundation (www.plasticosfoundation.org), a non-profit, volunteer medical organization that provides medical training and education to doctors working in developing nations, and free reconstructive surgery to people suffering from traumatic burns and other physical injuries.
The Bayat Foundation and the Plasticos Foundation hope to develop an integrated training program to build Afghanistan’s internal capabilities to treat severe burns, including those suffered by young children. This program will include surgical training for doctors, nurses, and other Afghan medical staff to better deliver life-saving restorative surgical care to Afghans suffering from traumatic burns and other debilitating physical injuries.
Demonstrating their fierce and collective commitment to training a new generation of Afghan doctors in life saving surgical techniques—and transforming the lives of Afghan patients with word class reconstructive care—senior officials from the Bayat Foundation and the Plasticos Foundation implemented the first phase of their due-diligence efforts with an intensive three-day assessment of Afghan hospitals.
Members of the joint Bayat-Plasticos Assessment Team included:
Dr. Sami Rahimi, Director of Health Initiatives, The Bayat Foundation
Mr. Montgomery Simus, VP, The Bayat Group
Mr. Alberto Lopez, VP The Bayat Group
Dr. Larry Nichter, Founder, Plasticos Foundation
Dr. Gary Fudem, Plasticos Foundation
Dr. Sam Sharar, Plasticos Foundation
Beginning at Kabul’s Indira Gandhi Hospital, the Bayat-Plasticos Team toured the hospital’s Pediatric Burn Unit and received detailed briefings on treatment procedures from the hospital’s senior medical staff. The Bayat-Plasticos team also conducted an extensive assessment of Kabul’s Istaqal Hospital and of the hospital’s Adult Burn Unit.
In order to improve the treatment outcomes for patients at both Indira Gandhi Hospital and Istiqal Hospital, Plasticos, in cooperation with the Global HELP organization, (www.global-help.org), provided both hospitals with access to Global HELP’s Digital Medical Library. Global HELP, is a free, open access medical library focused on children’s health with the goal of helping underserved communities help themselves. The mission of Global Help (HELP) is to provide free relevant healthcare information that is suitable for use by the underserved throughout the world.
Following their tour of Afghan Hospitals and their burn units, the Bayat-Plasticos team was received at The Afghan Ministry of Health, where they conducted extensive and detailed discussions about the state of the Afghan health system with H.E. Ferozuddin Feroz, the Afghan Minister of Health.
“Our tour of Afghan Hospitals and their burn units was so informative, so emotionally moving—and it showed us the need for the types of medical training and reconstructive surgery services that Plasticos, working with the Bayat Foundation, wants to provide to Afghans,” said Dr. Larry Nichter, the Founder of the Plasticos Foundation. “In partnership with the Bayat Foundation, we’re looking forward to conducting our very first training and treatment mission in Afghanistan.”
“The Bayat Foundation’s health clinics have provided medical treatment to over 2,000,000 Afghans since 2006, and we’re committed to helping our nation develop a modern healthcare system that can provide basic, lifesaving healthcare to all Afghans and treatments for Afghans who are suffering from complex, life threatening injuries,” said Dr. Ehsanollah Bayat, the Co-Founder of the Bayat Foundation.
“Now, our discussions with the Plasticos Foundation opens up the potential to provide a new level of medical training to Afghan doctors, and a new era of life transforming surgeries to Afghans – especially Afghan children – who suffer from catastrophic burns and other debilitating injuries. Truly, this is a time for us to work together and give all Afghans a chance for much better health—and much better lives.”
About Plasticos Foundation
Founded in 1999, Plasticos Foundation is dedicated to improving lives through reconstructive plastic surgery in the United States and worldwide. By performing surgery free of charge for underserved individuals, with traumatic injuries, disfigurement as a result of cancer and congenital deformities, volunteer medical teams alleviate suffering, both physical and emotional. Scaling impact, Plasticos Foundation surgeons train and empower host-country doctors to perform complex reconstructive surgical procedures, to achieve self-sufficiency.
To learn more, visit https://plasticosfoundation.org/, email info@plasticosfoundation.org or call 949-572-2942.