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(Warning: video above contains graphic war imagery)
As the death toll in Syria civil war continues to mount, Canadian doctors and paramedics have joined an international effort to provide medical care inside the conflict ravaged country.
Canadian doctors working in the region have reported incidents where they have had to treat small children with no pain medication, because there wasn’t any available.
Mark Cameron a paramedic who has been to Syria a number of times with the Canadian International Emergency Medical Services told CHCH’s Pamela Van Meer Sunday about the deadly challenges of trying to provide care.
“Every single hospital in Syria has been bombed, the one hospital in Aleppo while I was there, a helicopter hovered a few hundred feet over the building and dropped a bomb.”
The attacks have killed many of the country’s physicians and left hospitals in ruins.
Cameron is one of a group of Canadian medical professionals who have joined the Union of Syrian Medical Relief Organizations to help co-ordinate Canada’s aid efforts.
“Instead of multiple different charities doing multiple different things, I’m hoping to see a coming together of concerned human beings so that we can be more effective in terms of disbursement of aid.”
Anas Alkassen from the Union of Syrian Medical Relief says raising awareness of the devastation and the needs of the Syrian people with the Canadian government is key.
“The Canadian government for some reason has been very shy in contributing to the Syrian crisis so I hope bringing this big international medical relief is going to make them more comfortable to contribute. ”
The coalition also just opened this 1300 square foot warehouse to take in donations of medical supplies and ready them for the hardest hit areas.
Alkassen again, “They have no supplies and no sutures, no blood bags, simple things for us as Canadians, we decided we have to help”
Cameron says many are risking their lives to do so.
“This is a war on physicians, this regime in violation of The Geneva Convention, it actively targets physicians, doctors need to be supporting doctors.”
The warehouse full of supplies will get to Syria in one to two months.
The union also works to train doctors there on things like dealing with chemical weapons injuries and operating with no electricity.
They also have a hospital that helps treat the psychological effects the war is having on citizens.
