Essam and Dalal Obaid Foundation Partners with the International Committee of the Red Cross

GENEVA, May 26, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --

The Essam and Dalal Obaid Foundation (EDOF) is pleased to announce that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding to partner with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in support of the Weapon Traumatology Training Center in Tripoli, Lebanon. The Center offers free care to victims of firearms and collaborates with Lebanese university hospitals to provide surgeons and staff with tailor-made training to ensure Lebanese medical professionals develop the required and very specific surgical skills to operate on patients with complex injuries caused by firearms and explosive weapons. The weapon-wounded served by the Center come from across the region, including Lebanon, Palestine, Iraq, Libya and Syria. EDOF and ICRC have decided to partner because both agree on the importance of alleviating human suffering, protecting life, and upholding human dignity in regions affected by armed conflicts and other situations of violence.

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The ICRC is a humanitarian institution based in Geneva, Switzerland, and is part of the International Red Cross and Crescent Movement, one of the most widely recognized networks in the world, having won three Nobel Peace Prizes. The ICRC has put its 40 years of experience toward treating over 100,000 war trauma victims in an attempt to meet the growing needs of distressed individuals whose lives are at risk. The ICRC currently has 12 surgical teams and 10 surgeons working in 12 war-torn countries around the world. It also offers first aid, treatment, surgery, drugs, and much more to victims of bomb blasts, land mines, gunshots, and, in some cases, extreme and complex multiple traumas.

The Center's two locations in Al Chifae and Dar Al Zahra hospitals in Tripoli provide free medical care to patients injured by firearms and explosive weapons; offers physiotherapy, prosthetic rehabilitation and reconstructive surgery; transfers weapon traumatology skills to Lebanese medical personnel; and provides training to surgeons from the region. Over 63 Lebanese medical, nursing, and auxiliary staff work alongside 15 international health care professionals in the Center. Training is conducted via partnerships with Lebanese university hospitals as well as seminars, case studies, and on-the-job coaching.

The ICRC's efforts in Lebanon are part of a regional response to the increasing need for trauma centers that treat those injured by weapons. While these victims can come from a number of conflicts in the Middle East, refugees and victims from the Syrian civil war in particular are straining the capabilities of Lebanese medical facilities and staff. Over one million people have been wounded in the conflict, and of the over 1.1 million Syrian refugees in Lebanon, many of them are seeking medical attention in Lebanese hospitals. However, weapon traumatology is not included in Lebanese medical school curricula, so the care these victims are receiving is often compromised by lack of expertise. EDOF is therefore supporting the ICRC's work to improve on the situation through their efforts at the Center in Tripoli.

More information about the EDOF and ICRC partnership can be found at http://icrc.edof.org

SOURCE EDOF Org