MAP International has expanded its role
in support of the rebuilding of Iraq. After shipping in March four tons
of essential medicines and medical supplies, MAP has increased its support
with a shipment of $1.5 million in supplies that left Atlanta for Baghdad
on May 15.
Working with the International Medical
Corps, GoodWorks International and other corporate partners, MAP is participating
in this first airlift of humanitarian supplies to go directly into Baghdad.
MAP International contributed 43 percent of the cargo on the Iraq-bound
airliner.
"We're pleased to work together with our partner agencies to help save lives and promote the total health of the people of Iraq," says Michael J. Nyenhuis, MAP International President.
GoodWorks International, the Atlanta-based consulting firm headed by Ambassador Andrew Young, helped organize the airlift just after the war began, responding to requests for support from expatriate Iraqis who were concerned about the well being of their families in Baghdad. Carl Masters, President of GoodWorks International said, "We are very pleased that this effort has come together so quickly. We know that the supplies we are sending will save lives.
The consignment consists of bandages, antibiotics, pain medication, and other items typically associated with wounds from war. MAP medicines and supplies weigh over 32000 pounds of and are packaged on 90 pallets measuring 4400 cubic feet.
At a Glance
International Medical Corps is a California-based global humanitarian nonprofit organization dedicated to saving lives and relieving suffering through health care training and relief and development programs.
"The medical supplies being collected for the airlift will satisfy urgent needs identified through assessments we have conducted on the ground in hospitals and clinics in Baghdad and the surrounding regions," says Nancy Aossey, President and CEO of International Medical Corps.
MAP has also included medicines to treat anticipated medical conditions such as high blood pressure and worms and other parasites from unsafe water. Much of these supplies will be used to restock hospitals whose supplies have been exhausted since the beginning the war.
In southern Iraq, additional MAP shipments are en route for delivery and distribution through partners and national health care professionals working in Umm Qasr. Products are being shipped via Kuwait to the only hospital in the city, which is being run by 3 doctors and 45 nurses. The hospital staff has been overwhelmed, working non-stop since the beginning of the war.
Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies has provided Emergency Disaster Modules containing hospital supplies. The Modules, containing a large amount of quality sutures, bandages, gloves, casting materials and select pain relievers and burn treating medications, will be used to re-supply hospital stocks exhausted due to the city's isolation during the war.