Hey all-
Time for the next update of my vacation in the middle east. Sorry ithas been a while, but thank you all for the emails. So we are prettymuch settled in to Ibn Sina Hospital. The 28th CSH (who we replaced)left at the beginning of this week and should be arriving in thestates within the next few days. It is a little scary to see howtired and burnt out they were prior to leaving, as I am sure it willbe a reflection of how we all will feel at the end of our 15 months.
Life in the International Zone (the Green Zone) is becoming more orless routine. While working we are kept pretty busy and luckily thetime passes by because of that. The off time is almost more painfulas there is a pretty limited amount of things to do, there are only somany times you can go the palace or buy bootlegged DVD's. Aside fromthe tanks and armor outside the hospital and the corrals of T-walls(the 10 foot high cement barriers that line the streets) - you canalmost be in any run down urban environment. Occasionally get blastsfrom IED's that shake the hospital - even though they are a mile ortwo away, but nothing within the confines of the International Zonefor several months other than the occasional random mortar round.When you stand on the roof of the hospital at night - it is veryweird, though, to watch out into the "red zone" of the rest of baghdadand see tracer fire and the occasional explosions. And of course thecontinual train of casualties reminds you that we are definately in awar zone.
Luckily, we are with a reaaly good group of docs and nurses and thereis a great sense of comraderie and support for each other. It is avery collegial atmosphere - excpet for the weekly Morbidity andMortality reports - but it is what you would expect from a bunch ofsurgeons.
I hope you are all doing well. And thank you again for the supportand emails to myself and to Amy. I know we both appreciate it.
Happy Thanksgiving.