From mid April until late June of last year, Dr. Bayram spent around three months as a medical advisor with IMC in Iraq during the 2003 conflict. He helped coordinating medical activities in collaboration with local directors of different hospitals and the Health Services Directorate in the city of Nasiriya which was the most inflicted by war. He worked clinically in the largest emergency department; namely Nasiriya General Hospital, trained local physicians and nurses on different emergency medicine techniques, and organized a lecture series in core emergency medicine topics. Six medical residents were trained in the techniques of intubation and central line insertion. Dr. Bayram also defined the objective and goals of the mission in regards to emergency departments and critical care areas in the city.
With the help of IMC nurse Mathina Mydin,
many nurses were also trained and nursing triage system was first introduced. The
physical structure of the emergency department at Nasiriya General Hospital
was reconfigured with triage and resuscitation room to become a model
emergency department with 14 active emergency beds and 12 observation beds.
Medical equipment were later supplied through IMC with portable
ventilator, defibrillator, 2-pulse oximeters,2 EKG monitors, EKG machine,
adult/pediatric laryngoscopes and Ambu-bags, suction pumps, 2 oxygen
concentrators and 2 glucometers, X-ray developer. After several months, the
survival rate for patients coming to the emergency department was increased by
15% through adequate training and providing proper equipment.