Provide Medical Care to Street Children in Kabul

Dear Project Supports,

We did it!  After months of construction, waiting for equipment to arrive from the US, and conducting many interviews to find just the right staff, the clinic at the Aschiana School for Street Children in Kabul Afghanistan opened it's doors!

Dr. Barakat, Medical Director for the clinic, was hired on April 1st.  He spent several weeks working with the physicians and administrators at Afshar Hospital to learn the AMOR culture and become familiar with Afshar Hospital policies and procedures.  Dr. Barakat lead the interview process as nurses, midwives, phlebotomist, lab technicians and pharmacyist were hired to be part of his team.

The clinic provides all of the Basic Package of Health Services (BPHS) required by the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) and additional services.  Maternal and newborn care include Pre and Postnatal care, family planning and post delivery care for both mom and baby.  Free vaccines are provided for all ages, and Xango micronutrient meal packs are available to treat the malnourished.  Urgent care services, a lab and a complete pharmacy round out the clinic's service line.  Since the clinic opened on May 1st there has been an average of twenty patients a day.  We are confident that this number willsteadly increase as the community learns about the clinic and come to trust the quality of care being provided.

Thank you to each of you for contined support of this amazing project!  We are very excited about the future and I look forward to sharing with you the clinic'scontinued success.

Dear Project Supporters,

I would like to start with a heartfelt Thank You to each of you for your continued support of this project!  I am very excited about the progress that is being made and having spent the last month in Kabul, it is my privilege to write this report from my first hand visit to the Aschiana School for Street Children and seeing the new clinic in person.

Construction has been completed on both the clinic rooms that are on the first floor and the supporting offices and storage rooms which are in the basement.  Each clinic room has it's own exam table, small desk for charting and a sink.  The shelving in the pharmacy is well designed and the dispensary window opens directly into a small waiting area where patients can sit separate from those who are waiting for appointments.  The laboratory is separated into a front section that contains a blood draw station and the back area where tests are run. While we think much of this construction design is standard here in the US, this level of attention to a design that assures a high standard of infection prevention is rarely seen in Afghanistan.

Weather is a big factor this time of year since many of the roads in Kabul remain unpaved and have large pot holes.  There is no snow clearing equipment so roads can be shut down for several days at a time while a storm passes and driving conditions are restored.  Despite these challenges the clinic continues to make steady progress towards opening and we have begun moving the new equipment into their appropriate locations.

Interviews for the Medical Director are in progress.  This is a key position since we are looking for someone who is knowledgeable and has experience in administration and also has clinical experience in the pediatric population.  There are two qualified candidates at this time and Dr. Mark will finalize the hiring of this position during his trip to Kabul in March.  We anticipate that the hiring of the remaining staff will move forward quickly once the Medical Director is in place.

Thank you once again for your continued financial support of this clinic.  AMOR is grateful for the opportunity to provide life sustaining healthcare to the most at risk children in Afghanistan through your donations.