Doctor returns from mercy mission to earthquake-torn Pakistan
A mercy mission by a Bury St Edmunds doctor has helped thousands of victims of the Pakistan earthquake.
Dr Imran Khan, 33, who works at Mount Farm Surgery, Moreton Hall, was so moved by the TV pictures of his fellow countrymen that he flew out to the country to offer his help.
He said: "The plight of the people was the worst thing I saw – their injuries, their poverty and their helplessness.
"I just wanted to make a difference to somebody's life."
Dr Khan, who was born in Lahore, Pakistan, spent two weeks giving basic medical treatment to more than 5,900 sick and wounded people in appalling conditions in a remote mountain village.
"Because I was born in that country, I felt it was my duty to go out there and help," he said.
"I feel attached to Pakistan because if I have taken something from the people by being born and educated there I have got to give something back."
Helped by more than 4,000 in donations which flooded in from patients, staff and Bury-based companies, Dr Khan carried 350kg of medical supplies to the devastated area.
"I didn't expect such a huge reaction from the public and it really took me by surprise," said Dr Khan.
After driving 18 hours from Lahore to a helipad in Battgram, Dr Khan was determined to reach the people who the rescuers did not dare to reach.
"I wanted to go where nobody could go because the doctors were focusing on the larger areas and nobody was going to the smaller villages," he said.
An army helicopter flew Dr Khan, who lives in Cambridge with his wife and two children, to the isolated village of Rashang in the north-west of the country.
"It was shocked by the complete destruction I saw when I arrived," he said.
"People were sifting through the rubble of their houses to see if anything was left."
Of the village's 8,000 population, 1,000 people had already died in the quake.
Dr Khan said: "Every 15 minutes there would be an aftershock and houses were collapsing every day.
"You could actually hear a blast underground before you felt the ground shake."
Most of the critically ill patients had already been airlifted to larger towns but fractures, infections and spreading diseases were rife.
Dr Khan set up a makeshift hospital tent and treated 1,000 patients in the first day.
"People would walk for hours to come and see me," said Dr Khan.
"The queues stretched as far as the eye could see."
Dr Khan is now raising funds for a return trip to the village next March, after the winter snow has melted, to build a more permanent medical centre.
To make a donation towards Dr Khan's trip, contact Alison Johnson at Mount Farm Surgery on 01284 716112.
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Weather for Bury St Edmunds
Thursday 24 May 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 13 C to 25 C
Wind Speed: 14 mph
Wind direction: North east
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Sunny
Temperature: 12 C to 21 C
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