December 23, 2005

The greatest gift of all: MGHers help earthquake victims

In a season of generous gifts and joyful celebrations, the greatest gift of all can be found in charitable acts of kindness toward those who are most in need. And there are many in desperate need across the globe, especially in South Asia, where thousands of survivors of the devastating October earthquake in Pakistan now are struggling to survive the winter months.

According to news reports, approximately 73,000 Pakistani citizens died in the tragic earthquake, nearly 3 million have been left homeless and more than 4 million are in serious need of health care services. United Nations officials now are worried about a "second wave of deaths" among the survivors who have inadequate shelter from the bitter cold of the Himalayan winter and dwindling supplies of food and clothing. Officials also fear lethal outbreaks of measles, cholera and diarrhea among the survivors who now are living in makeshift, overcrowded tent cities.

MGH members of Harvard Longwood Muslims — a group of medical students, trainees and attending physicians from Harvard-affiliated institutions — are reaching out to hospital communities to encourage additional contributions to relief agencies that are bringing ongoing aid to the earthquake survivors.

Below is a list of reputable organizations that are delivering such aid.
• American Red Cross
1-800-HELP-NOW
www.redcross.org
• Unicef
1-800-4UNICEF
www.unicef.org
• Islamic Relief
1 (888) 479-4968
www.irw.org

For more information about the relief efforts, call Abdul R. Abdullah, MD, of MGH Neurology, at (617) 726-8797 or send e-mail to aabdullah@partners.org.