2010-12-15 22:50:06
Fall 2010
The year 2010 has been an exciting one for the International Committee for the Childern of Chechnya and the high point came in November for two reasons.
The first occurred at Weston, Vermont, when a two-day fundraising effort organized by Janet Warren and Annie Fujii on November 12-13 netted over $7,000 for the purchase of up-to-date instruments, especially a portable ultra sound machine. This was followed by the second development few days later when the Dorothea Ross Foundation approved a grant of nearly $9,000 for the purchase of an electrical surgical generator.
Both of these machines will aid immeasurably our medical practice in Grozny, capital of Chechnya. This year I spent five months in Grozny operating on children who were born with birth defects attributable to the chemical weapons used during the Russo-Chechen wars, youngsters suffering from serious burns and amputated limbs.
I want to express my profound gratitude to all of you for so generously backing the efforts of the International Committee for the Children of Chechnya in our efforts to alleviate the suffering of thousands of children injured by war.
I want to note, too, that a good part of these efforts has been stimulated by the production at the Weston Playhouse this last summer of the play by Gavin Broady, The Oath. This one-hour drama was inspired by the book The Oath, a Surgeon under Fire, which I wrote with my two good friends Nicholas and Ruth Daniloff of Andover, VT. The play is a one-act production in which actor Ian Barford of the Steppenwolf Theater of Chicago, played the surgeon as well as a number of other characters. Both the play and the book recount the challenges I faced as a doctor and surgeon during the wars which lasted from 1994 until 2008.
In Chechnya (a part of southern Russia) we still face many challenges. It is true that the capital Grozny has been largely reconstructed with help from Russia, the Chechen diaspora, and business men from Turkey. But much remains to be done. Many industries remain destroyed. Chechnya continues to be one of the most heavily mined former conflict zones in the world. The Russian authorities claim that they cannot find the maps which show where the mines were laid. Consequently, there have been no serious efforts at removing the mines and much territory is unusable for farming or animal husbandry.
An interesting development is that as a result of the war, thousands of Chechen families fled abroad with their children. Slowly, some of them are coming back. They bring with them children who have developed useful skills and who have learned a variety of foreign languages. Thus Chechnya, which was once a very isolated area in the Caucasus region is now more aware of the outside world and hopes to take advantage of these new resources.
When I travel to Chechnya I am often asked questions about the United States and whether America is purposefully pursuing a war against Islam. My experience, from living in Massachusetts, is that the United States is one of the most open societies in the world which tolerates all sorts of religious practices so long as they remain peaceful. It is not engaged in war against Islam. I can say that I have not experienced discrimination in the United States because my family and I are Moslems. However, I do know that there is prejudice against Moslem among some people in America. Living partly in the U.S. and partly in Chechnya, I hope to bring better understanding to both sides.
I look forward to the year 2011 and continuing to help the suffering children in my homeland. I understand there are people in Weston and further afield who may create a support group The Friends of the Children of Chechnya. As always I appreciate whatever you can do to help. I would like to add that my family and I are deeply grateful to the people of Vermont and the United States for being concerned about the sacred gift of life in war-torn areas far from U.S. shores.
Dr. Khassan Baiev
The year 2010 has been an exciting one for the International Committee for the Childern of Chechnya and the high point came in November for two reasons.
The first occurred at Weston, Vermont, when a two-day fundraising effort organized by Janet Warren and Annie Fujii on November 12-13 netted over $7,000 for the purchase of up-to-date instruments, especially a portable ultra sound machine. This was followed by the second development few days later when the Dorothea Ross Foundation approved a grant of nearly $9,000 for the purchase of an electrical surgical generator.
Both of these machines will aid immeasurably our medical practice in Grozny, capital of Chechnya. This year I spent five months in Grozny operating on children who were born with birth defects attributable to the chemical weapons used during the Russo-Chechen wars, youngsters suffering from serious burns and amputated limbs.
I want to express my profound gratitude to all of you for so generously backing the efforts of the International Committee for the Children of Chechnya in our efforts to alleviate the suffering of thousands of children injured by war.
I want to note, too, that a good part of these efforts has been stimulated by the production at the Weston Playhouse this last summer of the play by Gavin Broady, The Oath. This one-hour drama was inspired by the book The Oath, a Surgeon under Fire, which I wrote with my two good friends Nicholas and Ruth Daniloff of Andover, VT. The play is a one-act production in which actor Ian Barford of the Steppenwolf Theater of Chicago, played the surgeon as well as a number of other characters. Both the play and the book recount the challenges I faced as a doctor and surgeon during the wars which lasted from 1994 until 2008.
In Chechnya (a part of southern Russia) we still face many challenges. It is true that the capital Grozny has been largely reconstructed with help from Russia, the Chechen diaspora, and business men from Turkey. But much remains to be done. Many industries remain destroyed. Chechnya continues to be one of the most heavily mined former conflict zones in the world. The Russian authorities claim that they cannot find the maps which show where the mines were laid. Consequently, there have been no serious efforts at removing the mines and much territory is unusable for farming or animal husbandry.
An interesting development is that as a result of the war, thousands of Chechen families fled abroad with their children. Slowly, some of them are coming back. They bring with them children who have developed useful skills and who have learned a variety of foreign languages. Thus Chechnya, which was once a very isolated area in the Caucasus region is now more aware of the outside world and hopes to take advantage of these new resources.
When I travel to Chechnya I am often asked questions about the United States and whether America is purposefully pursuing a war against Islam. My experience, from living in Massachusetts, is that the United States is one of the most open societies in the world which tolerates all sorts of religious practices so long as they remain peaceful. It is not engaged in war against Islam. I can say that I have not experienced discrimination in the United States because my family and I are Moslems. However, I do know that there is prejudice against Moslem among some people in America. Living partly in the U.S. and partly in Chechnya, I hope to bring better understanding to both sides.
I look forward to the year 2011 and continuing to help the suffering children in my homeland. I understand there are people in Weston and further afield who may create a support group The Friends of the Children of Chechnya. As always I appreciate whatever you can do to help. I would like to add that my family and I are deeply grateful to the people of Vermont and the United States for being concerned about the sacred gift of life in war-torn areas far from U.S. shores.
Dr. Khassan Baiev
2009-01-20 14:35:42
Spring 2009
The year 2008 saw many changes both in my work and in the life of my country. At long last people in Chechnya were able to start rebuilding their lives, and I was able to work in Chechnya where for so many years I was a persona non grata. While Chechnya's children no longer face daily violence, far too many of them continue to suffer the consequences of a decade of bitter war. I will continue to dedicate my time and efforts to repairing the damage. I hope that all of you who have supported these efforts in the past will continue to support ICCC in the coming year. Thanks to your donations, the ICCC has made a difference in the lives of many Chechen children. Using your donations, for instance, the ICCC provided two large air conditioning units to cool the operating room at the Children’s Hospital in Grozny.
These air conditioning units, as well as the heating units purchased by ICCC the year before, are of course greatly appreciated by the permanent staff of doctors and nurses at the Children's Hospital, who face many shortages and material challenges daily. The units also contributed greatly to the success of a mission to Grozny from Operation Smile, the international organization which dispatches surgeons around the world to repair cleft palates and hare lips. This was the second Operation Smile to Grozny which I have organized in as many years. This time, our team of 26 medical personnel operated on more than one hundred children. I continued to monitor the children after the end of the mission, and all are doing well. The mission was such a success that I hope to organize another for the fall of 2009.
In addition to the surgeries that were a part of Operation Smile, I also used my time in Grozny last summer to operate pro bono on 40 other children with various birth defects and burns. Again, the ICCC used your contributions to support and make possible the work that I did - thank you. It is a time of great hope in Chechnya, and you have helped make these hopes possible.
Dr. Khassan Baiev
Chairman, International Committee for the Children of Chechnya
The year 2008 saw many changes both in my work and in the life of my country. At long last people in Chechnya were able to start rebuilding their lives, and I was able to work in Chechnya where for so many years I was a persona non grata. While Chechnya's children no longer face daily violence, far too many of them continue to suffer the consequences of a decade of bitter war. I will continue to dedicate my time and efforts to repairing the damage. I hope that all of you who have supported these efforts in the past will continue to support ICCC in the coming year. Thanks to your donations, the ICCC has made a difference in the lives of many Chechen children. Using your donations, for instance, the ICCC provided two large air conditioning units to cool the operating room at the Children’s Hospital in Grozny.
These air conditioning units, as well as the heating units purchased by ICCC the year before, are of course greatly appreciated by the permanent staff of doctors and nurses at the Children's Hospital, who face many shortages and material challenges daily. The units also contributed greatly to the success of a mission to Grozny from Operation Smile, the international organization which dispatches surgeons around the world to repair cleft palates and hare lips. This was the second Operation Smile to Grozny which I have organized in as many years. This time, our team of 26 medical personnel operated on more than one hundred children. I continued to monitor the children after the end of the mission, and all are doing well. The mission was such a success that I hope to organize another for the fall of 2009.
In addition to the surgeries that were a part of Operation Smile, I also used my time in Grozny last summer to operate pro bono on 40 other children with various birth defects and burns. Again, the ICCC used your contributions to support and make possible the work that I did - thank you. It is a time of great hope in Chechnya, and you have helped make these hopes possible.
Dr. Khassan Baiev
Chairman, International Committee for the Children of Chechnya
2008-11-29 21:37:21
January 2008
Dear Friends and Supporters:
Now that the situation in Chechnya has taken a turn for the better, I was able to spend two months in Grozny, assessing the medical situation there. During that time, two ICCC board members -- Ruth and Nicholas Daniloff -- visited me in Grozny . They were able to see for themselves the conditions in the hospitals, and how the ICCC money was being spent. See Ruth Daniloff’s Boston Globe article for her general impressions of Chechnya.
We visited the Grozny Neurological Hospital which has received some funding from the government to reconstruct the building. At the School for the Blind we also found that the buildings had been reconstructed and that they had heat. Khava Karimova, the head of the Blind Association in Chechnya, is working to identify blind and deaf children throughout the republic so that they might receive help. We have invited a specialist from the Perkins School for the Blind in Boston to visit, too. The Perkins School is one of the world’s leading specialists on special education for blind and deafblind children so that they can become members of society.
My conclusions after two months in Chechnya is that the aftermath of war is as bad as war itself. Behind the reconstruction which is taking place in the country lie terrible medical problems. Along with the soaring birth rate are soaring birth defects which are largely a result of the war and a contaminated environment. Each morning while in Grozny I went to the 9th City Hospital to consult with desperate parents whose children suffered from various defects -- cleft palates, hare lips, Down Syndrome -- as well as injuries such as serious burns. In Chechnya there are no specialist in birth defects, and pre-natal care is practically non-existant. The hospitals do not have basic diagnostic equipment such as ultra sound or x-ray machines. And despite the beginnings of reconstruction, hospital buildings are still in terrible shape -- while I was doing my consultations with children water was dripping from the ceiling.
Working with the international organization, Operation Smile, which operates on children with cleft plates and hare lips around the world, I identified 20 Chechen children in need of operations and traveled with them by bus to the southern Russian city of Taganrog. There I joined a team of international surgeon to carry out the operations on them. After the surgeries, the children, their mothers, and I returned by bus to Grozny, and for the next month I was able to visit each child frequently, and ensured that they were doing well before I had to return to Boston. Next September Operation Smile has agreed to hold one of their mission in Chechnya. with surgeons from the U.S. participating.
In addition to helping with medical equipment, we believe that one of the most important ways for the ICCC to help children in Chechnya is to introduce the medical profession to information on the Internet. Most doctors don’t even have computers let alone know how to use them. For this reason, I am trying to raise funds for an Internet medical center in Grozny which would allow medical personnel access to the field of medicine throughout the world.
Once more, I want to thank every one for their support. I want you to know I met so many people in Chechnya who expressed appreciation for our help. They were touched that Americans thought of them, even as the United States pursue its war in Iraq
With many thanks and all best wishes for the New Year,
Dr. Khassan Baiev, Chairman
Dear Friends and Supporters:
Now that the situation in Chechnya has taken a turn for the better, I was able to spend two months in Grozny, assessing the medical situation there. During that time, two ICCC board members -- Ruth and Nicholas Daniloff -- visited me in Grozny . They were able to see for themselves the conditions in the hospitals, and how the ICCC money was being spent. See Ruth Daniloff’s Boston Globe article for her general impressions of Chechnya.
We visited the Grozny Neurological Hospital which has received some funding from the government to reconstruct the building. At the School for the Blind we also found that the buildings had been reconstructed and that they had heat. Khava Karimova, the head of the Blind Association in Chechnya, is working to identify blind and deaf children throughout the republic so that they might receive help. We have invited a specialist from the Perkins School for the Blind in Boston to visit, too. The Perkins School is one of the world’s leading specialists on special education for blind and deafblind children so that they can become members of society.
My conclusions after two months in Chechnya is that the aftermath of war is as bad as war itself. Behind the reconstruction which is taking place in the country lie terrible medical problems. Along with the soaring birth rate are soaring birth defects which are largely a result of the war and a contaminated environment. Each morning while in Grozny I went to the 9th City Hospital to consult with desperate parents whose children suffered from various defects -- cleft palates, hare lips, Down Syndrome -- as well as injuries such as serious burns. In Chechnya there are no specialist in birth defects, and pre-natal care is practically non-existant. The hospitals do not have basic diagnostic equipment such as ultra sound or x-ray machines. And despite the beginnings of reconstruction, hospital buildings are still in terrible shape -- while I was doing my consultations with children water was dripping from the ceiling.
Working with the international organization, Operation Smile, which operates on children with cleft plates and hare lips around the world, I identified 20 Chechen children in need of operations and traveled with them by bus to the southern Russian city of Taganrog. There I joined a team of international surgeon to carry out the operations on them. After the surgeries, the children, their mothers, and I returned by bus to Grozny, and for the next month I was able to visit each child frequently, and ensured that they were doing well before I had to return to Boston. Next September Operation Smile has agreed to hold one of their mission in Chechnya. with surgeons from the U.S. participating.
In addition to helping with medical equipment, we believe that one of the most important ways for the ICCC to help children in Chechnya is to introduce the medical profession to information on the Internet. Most doctors don’t even have computers let alone know how to use them. For this reason, I am trying to raise funds for an Internet medical center in Grozny which would allow medical personnel access to the field of medicine throughout the world.
Once more, I want to thank every one for their support. I want you to know I met so many people in Chechnya who expressed appreciation for our help. They were touched that Americans thought of them, even as the United States pursue its war in Iraq
With many thanks and all best wishes for the New Year,
Dr. Khassan Baiev, Chairman