Physician’s and Surgeon’s certificate State of New York September of 1975.
Diplomat of American Board OF Obstetrics and Gynecology in November of 1976.
Physician’s and Surgeon’s Certificate State of California. July of 1977

From 1979 to 2003 Attending Physician in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, of Kaiser Permanente West Los Angeles Medical Center.
From 1998 to 2003 member of the Women’s Health Advisory Committee of Kaiser
Permanente while also serving as Director of the Education Program on Perimenopause and Menopause.

Beyond her profession Dr. Abdullah- held the following posts:

• Member of the Board of Directors of International Orphan Care (1993 to 2001)
• Executive Member of Afghan Medical Association of America, (1993 to present)
• Member Board of Directors Afghan Women Association of Southern California (2002 to present)
• Volunteer and Spokesperson for the Los Angeles Chapter of Emergency USA, a
• Humanitarian Italian Organization (2004 to Present).

After the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, Dr. Abdullah-made several trips to Afghanistan
shared her skills as an Obstetrician Gynecologist in various hospitals in Kabul, Panj Sheer and Mazare Sharief, including surgery and lectures in the field of Obstetrics and Gynecology. She has been active in the Southern California Afghan community raising funds for medical and educational efforts in Afghanistan.

Organized and participated in lectures and panel discussions on the issue of women’s
health in Afghanistan. Has been witness and an advocate for the medical problem that exist at the present in the country

Lectures:

• Women Lawyers Association of LosAngeles& LosAngeles County Branch of
the American Medical Woman’s Association / Post -Taliban Afghanistan:
Restoring and Maintaining the Civil Rights of Women. February28, 2003
•
George Washington University: Reframing GLOBAL Reproductive Rights, March
2006 “Safe motherhood as a Human Right, Motherhood and Maternal Mortality in
Afghanistan”
• University of Southern California: Documentary and Panel Discussion: Jung
(War) In the Land of the Mujahedeen April 2006. “The Work of EMERGENCY
in Afghanistan”
• University California Los Angeles: Health Challenges Beyond the Battlefield
Sponsored by Physicians for Social Responsibility, October 2006 “The
Lifesaving Work of EMERGENCY”
• Stanford University: Medical Consequences of War National Conference of
Student Physicians for Social Responsibility February 2007 “The Lifesaving
Work of EMERGENCY in Afghanistan”
• Emory University: WAR&HEALTH, sponsored by center for Health, Culture
and Society at Emory University, February 2008.
• University of Southern California: Becoming A Physician, THE GREATEST
CASUALTY OF WAR, Health at Time of War, March 2009.
• University of Colorado,Denver: Global Health, Emergency in Afghanistan
beyond an ordinary Hospital, December 2009.
• Brandeis University&Brandeis National Committee,Los Angeles Chapter,
• The Journey of Kabul, February 2010
• University of Southern California Global Health Awareness,Institute for Global
Health,USC Keck School of Medicine, How Emergency works in the world,
April 2010

Articles Published Recently:
• Kabul Revisited, May 2003 Afghan Medical Tribune
• Do not forget our promise to Afghans, June 2003 Los Angeles Daily News
• EMERGENCY in Afghanistan: Beyond an ordinary Hospital, July 2006
EMERGENCY USA Newsletter

A combined team of Afghan Medical Association (AMAA) and Loma Linda University (LLU) traveled to Afghanistan on April 11 – 17, 2002

The AMAA conducted a study to find useful information with regards to KMI medical students.

Questions were asked in writing and student responses were collected.

Aim:

The aim of this study was to question the students about the quality of their medical education, availability of teaching materials and their knowledge of English.

284 student of KMI grade 3 and 4 participated in the study.

Results:

Answer 1:

1. I am able to speak and understand English, Pashto and Dari
2. I am able to speak and understand Pashto and Dari but not English
3. I am able to speak and understand Pashto but not English or Dari
4. I am able to speak and understand Dari but not English or Pashto
5. I am able to speak and understand Dari and English but not Pashto
6. I am able to speak and understand Pashto and English but not Dari

Answer 2:

1. I believe enough books and periodicals are written in Dari or Pashto and there is enough manpower to translate current medical literature into Pashto or Dari?
2. I do not believe we have adequate available literature in Dari or Pashto and there is not enough manpower to translate current medical literature into Pashto or Dari?

Answer 3:

1. My English knowledge is adequate and I am able to follow lectures in English and understand when I read books in English.
2. My knowledge of English is limited and I am in need of help to learn more English.
3. I do not understand English but I am willing to learn English even if it causes a delay in my graduation from Medical School.

Answer 4:

1. I have some background training in computers and I am capable of using computers and the Internet to search for and acquire medical knowledge.
2. I have no background training in computers but I am willing to learn how to search for and acquire medical knowledge via computers and the Internet.
3. I have no background training in computers and I am not willing to learn how to search for and acquire medical knowledge via computers and the Internet.

Answer 5:

1. I am willing to apply for a position with the teaching faculty after graduation.
2. I am not interested in being one of the teaching staff and prefer to practice outside of Medical School.

Answer 6:

1. We have enough teaching staff in our university and there is no need for teaching faculty abroad to come and teach.
2. We don�t have enough teaching staff in our university and there is a need for teaching faculty abroad to come and teach.

Answer 7:

1. The current number of medical schools and medical students far exceed the number needed for Afghanistan, however, there is no need to take any action to change the current status.
2. The current number of medical schools and medical students far exceed the number needed for Afghanistan. There is a need for drastic action to decrease the number of medical schools and students. Some students who fail the examinations could become allied health professionals.
3. The current number of medical schools and medical students is just right to meet the needs of Afghanistan
4. The current number of medical schools and medical students are far less then the number needed for Afghanistan and therefore, there is a need for more medical schools and medical students.

Answer 8:

1. The current level of acquiring a medical education is below the standard and there is a need for improvement.
2. The current level of acquiring a medical education is adequate and there is no need for improvement at this time.

Conclusion:

1. The students of KMI are able to speak and understand English, Pashto and Dari (58%).

2. They do not believe that they have adequate available literature in Dari or Pashto and nor there is enough manpower to translate current medical literature into Pashto or Dari (80%).

3. However the knowledge of English is limited (58%) and they are in need of help to learn more English even if it causes a delay in their graduation.

4. Some have background training in computers (15%) but the majority had no training in computers. They are willing to learn how to search for and acquire medical knowledge via the internet and computers.

5. Majority are willing to apply for a position with the teaching faculty after graduation (70%).

6. They don�t have enough teaching staff in KMI and there is a need for teaching faculty abroad to come and teach (97%).

7. The Majority of students think that the current number of medical schools and medical students far exceed the number needed for Afghanistan. There is a need for drastic action to decrease the number of medical schools and students. Some students who fail the examinations could become allied health professionals (60%).

8. All the students think that the current level of acquiring a medical education is below the standard and there is need for improvement (100%).

Recommendation:

Fortunately the majority opinion of the students favor a change for the better. They want to see a drastic reduction in the number of medical schools and students. They are willing to learn English and accept English for teaching. The Ministry of Higher education and administration of KMI should take steps to improve the current status by heeding the recommendation of the students demand for change.

You can read about his latest contributions here

He served as an Assistant Professor at Loma Linda University, Chairman of the Medicine  Department and President of the Medical Staff at Loma Linda Community Hospital. He is  currently a member of the Medical staff of Arrowhead Regional Medical Center and St.  Bernardine Medical Center.
He is the founder and past President of Physician Health Network and the Afghan Medical Association of America. He is the recipient of multiple awards including the Best Teacher of the year as well as being voted the One of the Best Gastroenterologist of the Inland Empire.

He has been serving as a Gastroenterolgist in the Inland Empire since 1978 and has performed more then 20,000 procedure including ERCP, Endoscopy, Colonoscopy, Percutanous Gastrostomy, Paracentesis, Liver biopsies, Dilatation, Hemostasis, Ablation and Polypectomy .
He enjoys computer programming, music, the outdoors and playing chess.

I was born in Kabul , the capital of Afghanistan . I lived there until I was a young adult, receiving my medical degree from Kabul University . I then had the privilege of becoming the first Afghan woman to study medicine in the United States , where I currently work and live.

This past April, I decided to return to my war-torn homeland to see the conditions there firsthand. What I saw saddened me.

Despite promises by the international community to help reconstruct Afghanistan after decades of war and neglect, the country’s largest city, Kabul , remains in shambles. It only gets worse in the countryside.

As a visiting physician and an expatriate, I felt compelled to use my skills during my four week “vacation” to help women and children in need of medical assistance in the city. I chose to work with female doctors in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at the Rabia Balkhi Hospital in downtown Kabul where I could practice my specialty.

This hospital, I was told, had been visited six months earlier by representatives from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services who promised that it would become one of the most modern women and children’s medical facilities anywhere. So on April 21st, I was honored to be present when officials from the Afghan Department of Public Health, the U.S. embassy, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and a host of dignitaries came for a ribbon cutting ceremony and tour of the hospital.

What I saw in the hospital, where I was to begin work within two days, however, showed me that ribbon cuttings and visits by dignitaries are not the solution to the health care problems of the Afghan people. A spruced up facility for one day does not make the cut in the long run. The quality of the medicine that I was a part of 35 years ago had deteriorated significantly.

Forty-eight hours later, I began work in my tiny corner of this hospital and was confronted with the real condition of Afghan medicine. The delivery

rate for newborns was 55 to 80 per day. There were times when 20 to 30 women were in active labor, some with high risk and complicated pregnancies, giving birth with very little care, some on cold and naked steel delivery room tables of which there were few. Others, with sad and wizened faces, lay on the cement floor or with one or two of their countrywomen on a flat cushion, wrapped only in their shawls. These were the lucky ones.

I say this because the vast majority of Afghan women receive no prenatal care. Also, most deliveries still occur at home because women may be unable to get to a hospital or may not have the permission of a male family member to “go out.” As a consequence, the mortality rate for mothers and their infants is unacceptably high by any standard.

What I saw in the operating room was equally disturbing. It was not unusual during a major operation for my scrub nurse to tell me “I’m sorry, there are no more sutures.” Patients coming to this hospital often had to bring sutures, blood and antibiotics for their own surgeries. If the supply of sutures was depleted in the middle of an operation, the patient’s relatives would be sent out to buy more, if they had the money.

Electric power was also a frequent problem. This “model” hospital did not even have a back up generator, so surgery sometimes had to be performed by candlelight when the antiquated power grid in Kabul would collapse.

Why should we care about this situation? In many ways, it is a simple matter of integrity. As part of the war on terrorism, Afghanistan was promised much and has received little. It seems as though this country was  lost in the wake of the war in Iraq .

The sorry state of the medical system is just one example of the neglect by the international community that I observed during my tenure. Yes, some small progress has been made, but in my view, it would be a big mistake to  let this incremental approach continue, if the world wants a stable and peaceful Afghanistan in the future.  As for the five women who died unnecessarily while I was present, because simple medical protocols and basic precautions were not adhered to by poorly trained staff, the tragic consequence is that the many women and newborns who follow will continue to be in a life and death struggle until appropriate aid and education arrives.

Having been there in person, all of what I observed and experienced has motivated me to do my best to bring the world’s attention back to this seemingly faraway, but hugely important country.

Anyone who saw the suffering and chaos that I did could do no less.

Nafisa Abdullah, M.D., practices Obstetrics and Gynecology at the West Los

Angeles Kaiser Permanente Medical Center

August 1, 2002

The Minister of Public Health of Afghanistan, Dr Sohaila Siddiq accepted an invitation from the AMAA to speak at our seminar. The AMAA arranged her trip to California where she was greeted at the airport by the president and some directors of the AMAA.

The president welcomed the Minister and on behalf of the AMAA showed appreciation for accepting the invitation and for the participation in the upcoming seminar at Loma Linda University.

The Minister of Public Health thanked the AMAA leadership and hoped for a successful outcome.

 Minister of Public Health met with AMAA and LLU

August 2, 2002

The Minister of Public Health of Afghanistan, Dr Sohaila Siddiq met with the AMAA executive members Dr. Khushal Stanisai, Dr. Nafisa Abdullah Huf, Dr. Ibrahim Seraj, Dr. Yousuf Sadiq and LLU administrators Dr. Richard Hart, Dr. Joan Coggin, Dr. Gordon Hadley and Mr. Jerry Daly.

A representative of AARP, Mr. Khosti was also present at the meeting.

The meeting was focused on how the AMAA and LLU could help improve health services in Afghanistan both through medical education and primary care. LLU and the AMAA are combining their efforts to provide the needed help.

LLU had at least a 40 year relationship with Afghanistan with experience in developing countries of Asia and Africa. The AMAA members who are mostly graduates of Afghan medical schools, are more aware of the Afghan health system. The recent combined task forces of these two organizations have been trying to achieve a better understanding of the ongoing health problems inside Afghanistan and to find a means of implementing the goals they have been seeking.

LLU administration and the AMAA leadership expressed their willingness to extend their helping hand to the Ministry of Public Health.

The Minister of Public health thanked LLU and the AMAA for their past contributions and encourages the continued support.

The discussion was focussed on specific topics which was informative and useful.

The committee for primary care for Afghanistan later joined the discussion in preparation of their active role inside Afghanistan. The emphasis was more on preparing and teaching the educators in Afghanistan, specifically for the Middle Medical Institute at the public health ministry. The AMAA and LLU will ask the volunteers to donate the time and funds to cover their expenses, and they also may ask the Ministry of Public Health for available fund if feasible. Mr. Khosti acknowledges that this could be done through his office after approval by the Ministry of Public Health.

The Minister of Public Health was shown the Distant Learning Center, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and the Proton Treatment Center. This underground center is the only radiation center in the world that is capable of delivering an accelerated proton stream to cancer cells without damaging healthy tissue.

The Minister of Higher Education, Mr. Sharief Faez accepted the invitation of the Afghan Medical Association leadership and after the AMAA arranged the travel for the minister he traveled to Southern California and was welcomed by the president and treasurer of the AMAA at the airport on July 18, 2002. Mr. Faez and his wife visited Loma Linda University and met with the joint delegates of LLU and the AMMA. The problems of medical education, the availability of an educational environment, equipment and teaching staff were discussed in detail.

Mr. Faez acknowledged the past contributions of LLU and the AMAA and expressed a desire for continued support.

Mr. and Mrs. Faez toured the neonatal intensive care unit of Loma Linda Childrens Hospital and the Distant Learning Center. He was pleased to see the capability of the Distal Learning Center with the feasibility that the center could provide teaching inside Afghanistan via Satellite from LLU.

He was then welcomed by the Board of the Directors of the AMAA during a reception with guests from the LLU.

The Minister of Higher Education participated in a frank discussion with the directors of the AMAA and answered questions.

He asked the president of the AMAA to continue the ongoing effort and the AMAA to get more involved in medical education inside Afghanistan. The Ministry of Higher Education may provide facility for the AMAA center in Kabul, if the AMAA wishes.

There were more than 200 participant from all over the US and Canada. Most of the members were from the Afghan Medical Association, the Afghan Physician Association, other medical groups, representatives of Afghan Women Association of Southern California, several ex-cabinet ministers and other dignitaries.

Dr. B. Lyn Behrens, President of LLU and Dr Nafisa Abdullah Huf, a member of the AMAA executive committee, welcomed the attendees of the symposium.

Dr. Yousuf Sadiq, a member of the AMAA executive committee briefly described the goals and activities of the AMAA.

Dr. Ibrahim Seraj, a member of the AMAA executive committee and an associate professor of LLU and Dr. Gordon Hadley, Dean Emeritus of LLU, presented the past medical education in Afghanistan.

Dr. Wali M. Aseem, Cardiovascular Surgeon of DuBois, Pennsylvania discussed the past health statistics in Afghanistan.

Mr. Yasin Khosti, a member of the AMAA and Associate Director of Afghan Assistant Coordination Authority in Afghanistan and Ms. Homira Nassery, Health Consultant to the World Bank provided information regarding ongoing foreign aid and the World Bank’s role for Afghanistan.

Dr. Khushal A. Stanisai, president of the AMAA and assistant professor at LLU, presented the recent KMI student survey and the ongoing medical education problems facing Afghanistan.

Dr. Richard Hart, Chancellor of LLU briefly discussed LLU’s role in reconstruction of the health system in Afghanistan.

Professor Sohaila Siddiq, Minister of Public Health and a member of the AMAA, presented the recent health statistic in Afghanistan, the ongoing activity of the ministry and the need for expatriate Afghan physician to return and help in the reconstruction process.

She thanked the AMAA and LLU for their past contributions to the medical education and health systems inside Afghanistan and for the warm welcome she received during her stay.

Later she received a certificate of a donation of wireless equipment totaling $78,000.00 from Cisco Systems, microscopes from LLU and $4000.00 to improve the health system in Afghanistan from the Afghan Women Association of Southern California.

There is also a donation of few hundred wheelchair in the process.

K. Ali Siddiqui, M.D., Director AMAA

October 2002

Introduction

The US Department of Public Health and Human Services, during the preparation for the recent trip of Secretary Tommy Thompson to Afghanistan, requested the Afghan Medical Association of America(AMAA) and the Afghan Physician Association of America consider a joint effort to help address the current health concerns in Afghanistan.

The Department of HHS informed the AMAA leadership of the commitment of the Bush administration and specifically Secretory Thompson, to assess the health needs of Afghanistan and to be a partner in reconstruction of its health system.

The HHS saw the need for a joint effort of the said department and Afghan-American physicians and invited representatives of the AMAA and the APAA to travel to Afghanistan to be part of the discussions with Afghan officials and secretary Thompson.

In addition, they were asked to be a part of the team to assess the health needs of women and children in Afghanistan and to report on Medical Education in Afghanistan.

Homyra Behsoodi, M.D. and Qudratullah Mujadiddi, M.D. made their assessment and recommendations on maternity hospitals and women’s clinics. K.A. Siddiqi, M.D. and I (Habib S. Baha, M.D.) visited The Kabul Medical Institute(KMI).

Background

Up until the late 1970′s and the beginning of 1980′s, Afghan Medical Schools were under Kabul University and the Ministry of Education. However, after Russian occupation theKabul Medical Institute (KMI) was created. All Medical Schools became under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Public Health and later on the Ministry of Higher Education.

MEDICAL SCHOOLS: Currently, more then (17) medical schools are known to exist in Afghanistan but only KMI and Nangarhar Medical schools have any hope of becoming legitimate based upon the experience of the teaching faculty.

Kabul Medical Institute has the following Medical Schools in Kabul:

School of Curative Medicine 440 Females 1552 Males

School of Pediatrics 104 Females 679 Males

School of Stomatology 61 Females 349 Males

School of Military Medicine Unknown Unknown

Total(s) 605 Females 2580 Males  3185

TEACHING HOSPITALS: Ali-Abad Hospital, a training hospital located at the Kabul University campus, has been destroyed and demolished as a result of years of civil war. All of its equipment and surgical tools have vanished. A nearby maternity hospital has been transformed into a teaching hospital and renamed Ali-Abad. The afore mentioned hospital has limited tools for teaching which is why KMI Medical schools are dependent upon the Ministry of Public Health. There is a serious need for building a new teaching hospital on the University Campus.

OBSERVATION:

On October 5^th, all four of the Afghan-American Physicians had a meeting with Afzal Anwar, M.D., President of KMI, and its staff members. After a long conversation, and listening to their urgent needs, they toured all of the medical departments including: KMI Publications Department and library. The library has been supported financially by Loma Linda University (LLUMC California), along with medical books donated to the library by the AMAA. We noticed that the department of Publications operated with limited resources. There is only one Gestetner printing press, and it runs primitively by hand due to the lack of electricity. In the other corner of the same room, we observed a typewriter, which appears to be the only other resource for KMI’s 3,000 students.

In addition, there is also an archaic copy machine within the premises. In this institution’s prime, it was well known for having the most modern and impressive printing equipment in Afghanistan.

On October 6^th, Dr. Baha met with the Dean of the Curative Medical School, Dr.Wahab Noora. He explained to him all of his urgent needs and transportation problems as well as the need for communication/information technologies such as; telephones, fax machines, and personal computing/Internet. This request also includes the obvious, running water and electricity. Then on the same day, he met with the Senior Anatomist, Habib Brahman, M.D. (who was one of his past students and assistants in Nangrahar Medical School, Jilalabad). He had an informative conversation regarding his needs as well as recommendations. After that, he visited the Department of Microbiology. It was fortunate to meet with a group of current (male) students as well as approximately 20 female students in the Microbiology Lab. They were doing a Gram’s stain as a part of the lab assignment. The tools and conditions that they have to work with are very inadequate. The facility is large and capable of housing many more students; however, due to the lack of resources all students have to huddle into one corner of the room. Only one technician was available to assist all students. This is partly due to the inadequate salary of the professors, who must also maintain an outside job in order to survive. Many of them are still awaiting the pay promised them months ago. Ultimately, because of this dire situation, the students suffer. The primary teacher is someone who normally might be an assistant or technician under the doctor.

Even with the harsh realities and suffering of the medical staff and students, the overall interest and desire to excel and to learn is extremely high, which is good news. Students are literally begging for a chance to learn. They show an earnest desire to get the help they need to become good physicians. During conversations with the students, it was discovered that the majority of them felt that the most pressing issues were the acquisition of more textbooks and the importance of learning fundamental English, as the need is evident in the pursuit of a higher education.

To assess teaching material K. Ali Siddiqui, M.D. visited the Department of Pathology and Histology, while Dr. Baha visited the Departments of Anatomy, Physiology and Microbiology. Dr. Said Abdullah Hashemy, Professor of Pathology, was kind enough to show Dr Siddiqui his department. It presently consists of six assistants and two technicians. Needless to say, the findings are disappointing. There are only a few microscopes and not one single textbook of Pathology or Histology. There is no atlas of Pathology in the department other than in the library.

No tissue processing machines were present other than the ones provided with LLU assistance. It is apparent that students are forced to learn by relying on memory. This brings to mind the Afghan expression, ” anything written in the ice and exposed to the sun will melt away”.

During Dr. Siddequi’s visit to the Department of Surgery at Ali-Abad Hospital he met with his old classmate Dr. Said Hassan Manawi, who is presently Chief of Surgery. The findings at this site are also discouraging. The condition of the scrub room and operating room are desperately below standard. Contamination was everywhere. Dr. Manawi revealed that patients are admitted with infection, as a result of prior inadequate medical care, and discharged with infection due to hospital contamination. There is no reliable data as to patient mortality after discharge. The patient rooms are overcrowded. There are no restrictions for visitors. They sit on patient beds and most of the time one cannot distinguish between patient and visitor since patients wear their own clothing during their hospital stay.

Dr. Manawi, who trained in England and practiced surgery in Ireland for five years, stated that he could not operate because of his allergy to latex. There are no latex-free gloves available in the hospital. Dr. Siddiqui promised that either the Afghan Medical Association or he would send him latex-free gloves.

The team visited with Secretary Thompson on the grounds of the American Embassy in Kabul for a working lunch on Tuesday, October 8^th, 2002. During the meeting, assessments of the KMI and Maternity and Pediatric Clinics of Kabul were presented. Mr. Thompson requested the team’s presence at his meeting with the Afghan Secretary of Public Health, Dr. Sohaila Sidiq. In this meeting, Secretary Thompson presented the following recommendations to the Department of Public Health:

To build a modern pediatric and women’s clinic in Kabul. This clinic would not only deal in pediatrics and woman’s health, but would also be a teaching institution for doctors, nurses and midwives. These trainees would then serve other provinces and communities. This plan was exciting and welcomed by Dr. Sidiq.

Secretary Thompson stated that some American Universities, including Johns-Hopkins, have expressed a desire to affiliate with KMI. Dr. Sidiq however clarified that at the present time KMI is operating under the Department of Higher Education. She is now a part of the process of including KMI as part of the Department of Public Health. Only then could an affiliation with Johns-Hopkins (or any other American medical school) be considered.

The meeting concluded and a press conference was then held in the American Embassy.

Conclusion

Dr Baha and Dr. Siddiqui addressed ways to fulfill the Medical Schools needs with Dr.Anwar, the president of KMI. He indicated that he would welcome foreign professors to teach the students if they would teach for at least one semester and administer a final exam for their course(s). If a Professor could not stay long enough to complete a semester, then he would be welcomed to teach the faculty.

Loma Linda University has been affiliated with KMI for many years. This affiliation however, has basically been limited to the teachings of Dr. Gordon Hadley, Professor of Pathology, a limited rejuvenation of the pathology laboratory, improvement of KMI’s library and the building of the LLU compound for visiting professors. This has been a great effort on the part of LLU, but certainly not even close enough to meet the needs of KMI.

Dr. Nadir Omar, the French-trained physiologist and past professor of Kabul Medical School, came from France and was present at the meetings. He discussed the long and historic affiliation that France’s University of Lyon has had with KMI and the desire to continue it. Although, he admitted the involvement had been somewhat limited in recent years.

Other Universities have expressed interest in affiliating themselves with KMI. But, no significant teaching or material aid has been provided.

RECOMMENDATION:

In all departments that the AMAA members met with, the needs were consistent. It would be trivial to list the departments and their needs individually since they are nearly identical (and lengthy). Below is a list of the most general and urgent needs:

Teaching environment: The most important needs are basic classrooms and the equipment and supplies needed to conduct educational programs including, but not limited to textbooks, lab equipment (basic chemicals, storage/measurement tools, lab stations), audio/visual components like projectors, monitors, charts, writing utensils (pencil/pen, paper, folders, etc,) computers and printers.

A Teaching Hospital in close proximity to KMI: Immediate help to rebuild and resurrect the Ali-Abad Hospital.

The urgent need to update the current curriculum for medical education.

The availability of foreign or AMAA qualified professors to teach the existing teaching faculty and to establish a program to update the teachers as priority in addition to student education.

Continuing medical education for Medical Staff.

Experienced foreign medical school advisors to set up the administrative structure and to assist with the ongoing administrative needs of the medical schools.

A drastic reduction in the number of medical students to a level proportionate to the needs of the country and the currently available teaching environment.