InfoAnda - Gender issues worsen Iraq's medical woes

Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case
Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They

Taiwan denies boycotting Australian film festival
Thursday, August 6, 2009

AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e

Merkel's support dips, regional ally resigns International
Thursday, September 3, 2009

By Sarah Marsh and Noah Barkin

BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German

Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who

Asian markets mixed after Wall Street rally
Wednesday, March 18, 2009

By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an

Commission proposes limited commercial whale hunts | 24 April 2010
Japan eyes solar station in space | 8 November 2009
S.Korean won down 2.2 pct at 2-week closing low | 11 November 2008

Analysis: Mexico's splintering drug gangs pose new security risk | | 17 August 2011

">Forum Views () ">Forum Replies ()

Read more with google mobile : Gender issues worsen Iraq's medical woes

Yahoo! My Yahoo! Mail Yahoo! Search Search: Sign InNew User? Sign Up News Home - Help Navigation Primary Navigation Home Singapore Asia Pacific World Business Entertainment Sports Technology Top Stories Most Popular Secondary Navigation Africa Europe Latin America Middle East North America Search Search: Gender issues worsen Iraq's medical woes By KATARINA KRATOVAC,Associated Press Writer AP - Monday, May 25 SAQLAWIYAH, Iraq - This part of Iraq, says Dr. Ayad al-Hadithy, is so conservative that a man would rather have his pregnant wife die in labor than be touched by a male nurse or doctor. ADVERTISEMENT It's just one of the difficulties faced by U.S. and Iraqi officials as they struggle to nurse the war-ravaged province of Anbar back to health. One showcase of their efforts is the reopening last year, for women only, of the Nursing School in Anbar's capital, Ramadi. Another is a field school in the town of Saqlawiyah that has just graduated its first batch of 10 female nurse's aides. Nowhere are nurses more badly needed than in Saqlawiyah and its surrounding villages, where 50,000 people have no women doctors and only one female nurse and one midwife, both old and overworked. The area's most recent records, from five years ago when the anti-U.S. insurgency was just beginning, show that one in five women dies in childbirth, and many women never even see a doctor. The strictures on women as nurses stems from the province's strong tribal society and its puritan reading of Islam. But al-Hadithy, a 49-year-old mother-and-child care specialist, doesn't accept it. "This is ignorance, not Islam," he said. "Nowhere does Islam say: 'Let your wife die.'" Another obstacle, he said, is the reluctance of husbands to let their wives travel 25 miles to Ramadi to train as nurses. So three months ago, the center in Saqlawiyah was opened. But first al-Hadithy had to persuade the village imams to back the project _ or at least not preach against it _ and the husbands to let their wives train with him. Yet another problem is that female nursing is a profession held in low regard by Iraqis, because it requires night work and contact with male patients. "But I knew if I could teach them some basic first aid _ how to give a shot or take someone's blood pressure _ these women would be accepted," al-Hadithy said. Muzdalifa Hamza, 33, was told about the program by her cousin, Saqlawiyah's only ambulance driver. Her husband approved and the mother of four even persuaded her sister Khulud, 40, to come along. "When someone knocks on my door in the middle of the night, I now know enough to go out and help a sick person," Hamza said. "But someday I want to be a real nurse." In the fall, she plans to enroll in a three-year course at the Nursing School. The Saqlawiyah project was spearheaded by Vernon Pressley, a senior public health adviser from the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the head of the local U.S. reconstruction team attached to the Marines in Ramadi. "The sheiks would never have agreed to let women leave for training far away, so I thought of bringing it to them," Pressley said. The Saqlawiyah project has cost $12,000, and the 10 trainees share a monthly wage of $250. The sum is small compared with the $847 million the U.S. says it has spent on Iraq's health needs since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. But in Anbar, the security issue was huge. The province was a stronghold of the insurgency and the Saqlawiyah center couldn't open until after tribal sheiks switched sides two years ago and joined U.S. troops in the fight. The nursing shortage is only part of Iraq's hollowed-out health care system, plagued by corruption, mismanagement and a lack of equipment and medicines. Iraqi medical professionals started leaving in the 1990s, during Saddam Hussein's rule. Since the invasion, thousands have fled abroad, while of those who stayed, at least 620 have been killed, among them 134 doctors, some gunned down in their own clinics. Dr. Ahmed Ibrahim Salih, Ramadi's city health director, has escaped three assassination attempts that killed his assistant, five of his co-workers and a bodyguard. Iraq's violence has ebbed and Anbar is quiet, but Salih still works from a heavily guarded office. Meanwhile, the strengthened tribal mores have brought their own restrictions on females, so much so that women interviewed at Ramadi's Nursing School asked not to be fully identified. They attend classes wearing all-covering dark robes and head scarves. F.R., one of 10 siblings, is a high school graduate who persuaded her family to let her study nursing, telling them that someday she would have a job and bring in money. "I believe women can work and still be respected," said the 20-year-old. But their teacher, Suad Aziz, says old prejudices run deep, even in urban Ramadi. "It's the attitude that nurses are loose women," said Aziz. She looks at her class with hope, saying: "Once we have them graduate and working, things will change." Salih, the Ramadi health chief, says that since the invasion, 30 percent of the province's doctors, about 800 of them, have left and 80 percent of the medical infrastructure, from health centers to hospitals, are in ruins. Salih pushed the government in Baghdad to open the three nursing schools in Anbar, starting with Ramadi, with Fallujah and Haditha to follow. He believes they could solve the province's nursing shortage in five years. That is providing they get jobs. A nurse earns about $300 a month, but barren Anbar depends for funding on the Baghdad government, which has budget problems and must approve any hiring. "If I could, I would hire all the Nursing School graduates, tomorrow," says Khamis Musharaf, a pediatrician at the province's only maternity and children's hospital. "But the government won't let us. Our hands are tied." The 250-bed hospital has no nurses, and relies on mothers to tend their sick children. Email Story IM Story Printable View Blog This Sign in to recommend this article » 0 users recommend Related Articles: World 30 hurt in clash at Sikh temple in AustriaAFP - Monday, May 25 UK-World SummaryReuters - Monday, May 25 Darfur rebels seize town from Sudan troops: UNAFP - Monday, May 25 Iran summit vows to fight drugs, extremismAFP - Monday, May 25 Darfur fighters take Sudan army baseReuters - Monday, May 25 Most Popular – World Viewed Obama signs credit card reforms Smokers duped by light cigarettes: US court Vitamin D boosts brain power in middle-aged men Popular cereal is a drug, US food watchdog says Health chiefs warn against 'sneaky' flu virus View Complete List » Search: Home Singapore Asia Pacific World Business Entertainment Sports Technology Top Stories Most Popular Copyright © 2009 Yahoo! Southeast Asia Pte Ltd. (Co. Reg. No. 199700735D). All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy - Terms of Service - Community - Intellectual Property Rights Policy - Help

Other News on Monday, 25 May 2009
British royal chauffeur suspended over security breach
Iran summit vows to fight drugs, extremism
Britain's Button wins Monaco Grand Prix
North Korea conducts nuclear test, faces more isolation | International |
Ecuador president nixes EU free trade deal
Darfur fighters take Sudan army base
World Bank chief warns about economic crisis
Iran says foreign troops no help to region's security | International |
British MPs claimed expenses for family hire: report
US military: Iraq attacks down nearly 60 percent
Sri Lanka's Tigers acknowledge leader's death | International |
GM, Chrysler face decisive week as deadlines loom
Israel to keep expanding settlements: Netanyahu
Myanmar says Thai meddling over Suu Kyi trial | International |
Facebook block ahead of Iran vote hampers youth
Gender issues worsen Iraq's medical woes
Hezbollah rejects report linking it to Hariri death
Darfur fighters take Sudan army base: peacekeepers | International |
Japan panel wants first strikes against enemies: report | International |
Iran hosts high-profile summit on drugs, extremism
Netanyahu: We'll build in existing settlements
Preacher dies after Sikh temple attack in Vienna | International |
US House Speaker Pelosi in China for climate talks
South Korea plans public funeral for ex-leader Roh | International |
Afghanistan's Karzai in Iran for terror, drugs summit
Gore, others urge CEOs to back climate change deal
Suicide car bomber kills 7 in Somalia, residents flee | International |
Netanyahu defies Obama on Israeli settlement freeze | International |
Heavy rains trigger flood alert in southern China
Sri Lanka pledges more democracy in Tamil zone
Indie filmmakers in Cannes still dreaming of 3-D | Technology |
Asian, European ministers to meet in Hanoi
Police chase ends with river rescue in upstate NY
Tigers admit leader dead; UN presses Sri Lanka over access
Australian flood waters create 'inland sea'
Search focuses on Calif., Mexico for mom, sick son
Australia stops boat of suspected asylum seekers
Terrorism arrests: snitch, sting, then controversy
Suu Kyi lawyers prepare defence in Myanmar trial
Bondsmen upset by policies that free more people
Japan to relax arms export ban: report
Ex-con's magazine focuses on advocacy, prison life
Democrats win Mongolia presidential poll: reports
Top U.S. military officer pushes Guantanamo closing
S.Korea bonds gain ahead of MSB auctions, maturity
Border Patrol chooses Canaan for new station
2 killed, 6 hurt in Ariz graduation party shooting
Seoul shares fall; ex-president's death weighs
China investors make deal for stake in NBA Cavaliers
Final exec faces sentence in SC firm's $275M bust
China's Hainan Airlines posts annual loss
Recession weighs heavily on aid to poor countries
Police: Officer kills Ohio man who took hostage
US, China set to grapple with economic concerns
Chinese traders leave as Kyrgyzstan closes markets
Danish 'Antichrist' provides Cannes' annual scandal
Porcupine, python strut catwalk for Russian zoo
YouTube star Susan Boyle through to talent show final
Cannes-winner Haneke probes dark secrets of bourgeois life
Gainsbourg crowned in Cannes for 'Antichrist' shocker
Haneke's chilling White Ribbon wins in Cannes | Entertainment |
'Night at the Museum' comes to life to claim top spot
Coco Chanel film brings curtain down in Cannes | Entertainment |
'White Ribbon' village drama ties up top prize at Cannes
Museum comedy beats Terminator at box office | Entertainment |
French 'Prophet' takes Cannes Grand Prix
Internet star Susan Boyle stuns again with Memory | Entertainment |
Haneke's 'White Ribbon' takes top prize at Cannes
Cannes Film Festival prize winners
Indie filmmakers in Cannes still dreaming of 3-D | Entertainment |
Theatre fans up in arms over Marcel Marceau auction | Entertainment |
Italian showman Benigni brings Dante to America | Entertainment |
ETA warns of new strategy for independence
Facebook block ahead of Iran vote hampers youth
Pakistani soldiers battle Taliban in Swat town | International |
Iran's Ahmadinejad rejects Western nuclear proposal | International |
Myanmar opens trial again, Suu Kyi may take stand | International |
Riots in India after Austrian Sikh killing | International |
Karadzic files motion detailing immunity deal | International |
Muslim nations link better ties with Israel to peace | International |
Afghan floods kill 94, make thousands homeless | International |
Atlantis lands after successful Hubble fix
Nokia starts roll-out of Apple App Store rival | Technology |
Craps player sets record at NJ casino
Iranian moderate candidate criticizes Facebook ban | Technology |
Congress to Obama: Gitmo plan before Gitmo money
YouTube star who witnessed shooting comes clean | Technology |
Bride is on board after Grand Central proposal
Correction: Giuliani-Harassment Arrest story
Man killed in NJ boating accident died of drowning
New Yorkers prepare for car-free Times Square
Deadly Indian riots after Sikh shooting in Austria
Huge lobster roll to be colossal creation
Police foil bomb attack at Philippine port
Vegas casinos try bargains to lure back visitors
Korea Hot Stocks
Kenya to enact laws regulating mobile phone banking | Technology |
Tamil Tigers admit leader is dead
China's herders plea for help as wolf packs return
Myanmar looms over foreign ministers' meeting
American diver missing off Malaysia
Thousands mourn former SKorea leader
Myanmar rejects ASEAN statement on Suu Kyi
Guru dies after Austrian temple clash: police
Kumble heroics not enough as Deccan win IPL
Popular film wins Cannes, but Antichrist lingers | Entertainment |
Museum comedy beats Terminator at box office | Entertainment |
Internet star Susan Boyle stuns again with Memory | Entertainment |
Small Explosion Damages New York City Starbucks; Residents Evacuated
San Diego Brush Fire Believed To Be Caused By Human Activity
First African-American To Lead NASA
Pelosi Leads Climate Change Delegation To China
U.S. Soldiers With H1N1 Flu Leave Kuwait
Obama Visits Tomb Of Unknown Soldier As Nation Marks Memorial Day
Ohio Man Who Believed Neighbor Kidnapped Parents Goes On Shooting Rampage; Shot Dead By Police
North Korea Conducts Second Nuclear Test; Ignites Tensions In Peninsula, Washington
Kim Jong Il, Obama Express Condolences After South Korean Leader's Suicide
Herbert York, Physicist Who Helped Develop Atomic Bomb And Later Advocated Arms Control, Dead At 87
Raise a glass to Hangover | Entertainment |
Greece at new risk of being pushed off euro
Bodies of missing Tenn. mom, Jo Ann Bain, and daughter found
Female Breasts Are Bigger Than Ever
AMD Trinity Accelerated Processing Units Now in Volume Production
The Avengers (2012 film), made the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time
AMD to Start Production of piledriver
Ivy Bridge Quad-Core, Four-Thread Desktop CPUs
Islamists Protest Lady Gaga's Concert in Indonesia
Japan Successfully Broadcasts an 8K Signal Over the Air
ECB boosts loans to 1 trillion Euro to stop credit crunch
Egypt : Mohammed Morsi won with 52 percent
What do you call 100,000 Frenchmen with their hands up
AMD Launches AMD Embedded R-Series APU Platform
Fed Should not Ignore Emerging Market Crisis
Fed casts shadow over India, emerging markets
Why are Chinese tourists so rude? A few insights

USD EUR - 1 year graph	VPN on MacOSX	BlogMeter 1.01