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Israeli Doctor Blogs from Japan Aid Mission

(Canadian Jewish News) Laura Fixman - The speakers at the second annual DARA (Doctors Against Racism and Anti-Semitism) medical conference in Toronto on Sunday included Dr. Ofer Merin, Shaare Zedek Medical Center's deputy director-general, who joined the conference via video. Merin is currently in the northern Japanese town of Kurihara aiding the victims of the March 8 earthquake and tsunami, with a medical team that includes 19 physicians and nurses from the Israel Defense Forces. Operating out of a makeshift clinic in the village of Minamisanriku - which was completely destroyed by the tsunami and lost about half of its 17,000 residents - Merin has been posting messages on his blog. "The people who survived are the refugees you read about on the news - completely homeless. These are the ones we came to assist," Merin wrote. The Israeli clinic is led by the only foreign team on the ground, providing wards for pediatrics, surgery, maternity and gynecology, ophthalmology and intensive care, as well as a lab and pharmacy. "Physicians from all around are coming with their patients for consults with our specialists, for blood tests and x-rays. Pregnant women are coming for ultrasounds as well, as this is a service they don't have," wrote Merin. At first the Japanese were hesitant to have foreigners treat them, but the Israeli team became increasingly popular after they treated the mayor. "To be a foreigner and to work with Japan, this is the first time this has been done," Merin said. The clinic is 150 km. north of the Fukushima power plant.
2011-04-08 00:00:00
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