The Foreign Service Journal, December 2004

The forum’s agenda featured clinical presentations, panel discus- sions and organizational develop- ment sessions for Iraqi medical spe- cialty societies, as well as keynote presentations by prominent Iraqi and international officials. Papers were presented by Iraqi doctors. International physicians gave clini- cal presentations on 16 specialty areas, ranging from anesthesia to emergency medicine to obstetrics, oncology, orthopedics, plastic surgery and psychiatry, and broader topics such as medical ethics, malpractice, and organiza- tion governance. The conference expenses were covered through a $250,000 USAID-funded grant from Abt Associates, Inc., and included purchase and distribution of copies of the Journal of the American Medical Association , scholarships for registration and lodging costs for young physicians, displays for med- ical equipment, invitations for Iraqi and international guests, and print- ing and distribution of conference literature. Both Drs. Brennan and Gibbons left Iraq before the forum convened, but Dr. Brennan returned to Iraq for the conference in February, and continues to volunteer his time on the project. What Next? The exchange in Iraq changed the American physicians who participated — their hearts and voices have a com- pelling passion now. They returned to their practices and sought out opportunities to share their experiences with colleagues, local civic organizations, and at regional and national medical meetings. These highly motivated physi- F O C U S D E C E M B E R 2 0 0 4 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 33 Professional organizations had become pawns of Saddam Hussein’s government ... discussion of issues and sharing of knowledge did not exist.