Turkish doctors save two lives with a single surgery

MOGADISHU (A.A) – October 4, 2011 – Turkish doctors saved the lives of a mother and her baby with a single surgery at Banadir Hospital in Somali capital Mogadishu.
Eight-month-pregnant Fahriye Hassain, who was hit by a car, broke her spine, and suffered from paraplegia.
Taken to Banadir Hospital, Hassain was operated by Turkish doctors who have been working voluntarily in the hospital for a while.
Turkish doctors performed the first spinal surgery in Somalia, and saved the lives of both Hassein and her baby.
Doctor Kamil Cagri Kose told A.A that they did not have the equipment required for the surgery so they asked them from a manufacturing company in Turkey, and the company sent the materials free of charge.
Kose said that if they had not performed the surgery, the woman and her baby would have certainly died. Kose added that the surgery was successful.
Hassain's sister Faduma Zahra told A.A that Fahriye was first taken to Somali doctors who said they could not do anything, adding that Fahriye and her baby were in good condition thanks to Turkish doctors.
Turkey is helping Somalia which has been suffering from a severe drought and famine.
Red Crescent, Human Rights and Freedoms (IHH) Humanitarian Aid Foundation, Turkish International Cooperation & Development Agency (TIKA), Turkish Health Ministry, Turkish Prime Ministry Disaster & Emergency Management Directorate (AFAD) and Turkish Religious Affairs Authority are some of the Turkish institutions which extended a helping hand to Somalia.
Somalia is currently facing with one of the worst droughts in the past 60 years.    
The epicenter of the drought lies on the three-way border shared by Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia, a nomadic region where families heavily depend on the health of their livestock. Uganda and Djibouti have also been hit by the disaster.    
Tens of thousands of people have so far been displaced due to the humanitarian situation in the region.