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'Hard to sleep in silence': UAE doctor who volunteered in Gaza recounts life amid bombing

The Emirati field hospital, which is part of Operation Chivalrous Knight 3, has facilities to house 150 patients at all times

Published: Tue 30 Jul 2024, 6:00 AM

Updated: Tue 30 Jul 2024, 8:41 PM

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Emirati integrated field hospital in Gaza. File photo used for illustrative purposes

Emirati integrated field hospital in Gaza. File photo used for illustrative purposes

A UAE-based doctor who volunteered at the country’s field hospital in Gaza shared that it took him several weeks to get a good night’s sleep after returning home. Dr Thahir, an orthopaedic surgeon who spent nearly a month working at the UAE-backed hospital, said he had grown accustomed to sleeping through constant bombardments.

“When I first arrived there, I struggled to sleep because of the constant bombing sounds,” he said. “But after a while, I got used to it. Then, when I got back home, the silence was actually tougher for me to handle. It was hard to sleep in silence. It took me almost a month to adjust and sleep through the night again. It is amazing how the human body gets used to certain things.”

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Dr Thahir said he was thankful for the opportunity to volunteer. “Along with hundreds of other doctors, I also applied to volunteer,” he said. “Usually, they pick doctors who can speak Arabic so that they can communicate more effectively there but the team was short on orthopaedic surgeons and that is how I got the opportunity to go.”

The Emirati field hospital, which is part of Operation Chivalrous Knight 3, has facilities to house 150 patients at all times.

Life changing experience

According to Dr Thahir, volunteering at the field hospital was an unforgettable experience for him. "One of the patients we operated on had to have one leg and one hand amputated,” he recalled. “Later, we found out that his entire family had been killed in the air strike that injured him. What really blew me away, though, was the incredible patience and faith of him and the other Gazans. Their belief in God was unshakeable despite everything they’d been through. It was truly a life-changing experience for me.”

While the experience was truly memorable, Dr Thahir also recalled the demanding work routine. "We were doing approximately seven or eight surgeries a day,” he said. “Although we were a a team of four doctors, one of us was the head of department so he had a lot of other work to do. So it was three of us sharing the work."

"We started our work at 8am and finished at 8pm on most of the days. Once in three days, we would be on-call at night, which meant that if there was an urgent case at night, that doctor would operate on them. One day when I was on call, I started at 8am and finished only the following day at 3pm.”

Despite the gruelling schedule, Dr. Thahir highlighted the hospital's impressive resources and support. “At the UAE field hospital, there are enough medicines to last patients for at least three months, even if new shipments are not brought in,” he said. “There is an orthotist at all times who provides free prosthetics to amputee patients. There are some instruments there that you wont find even in some private hospitals in the UAE. It is a very well-equipped hospital.”

Adding to the positive aspects of his experience, Dr. Thahir noted the exceptional care extended to the medical staff. “I actually brought some ready-to-cook meals with me just in case,” he said with a chuckle, “but I never had to use them. We were fed well three times a day, and they took care of everything, including washing our clothes. It was really impressive how well they managed everything for us.”

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