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A Healthcare Hub Where Fire Once Rained
Friday, August 15th, 2014
The newly-opened Stepanakert hospital
Stepanakert was decimated by the time heroic Armenians liberated
Shushi and stopped the inhumane bombardment by GRAD missiles of the
city. Since then, through an Armenia Fund healthcare initiative that
has built a state-of-the-art hospital and polyclinic, the city has
become a healthcare hub.
It would have been nice to have a hospital then, in 1991. The shelling
from Shushi had started in November and wouldn't stop until May of
1992. Only when Armenian forces liberated the historic Armenian town
from Azerbaijanis who were using it as a staging ground for their
attacks on the civilian population of Stepanakert.
Thousands of civilians were under fire in one of the most brutal
attacks on a civilian population, reminiscent of the firebombing of
Dresden. It was due to the unfettered killings of World War II,
Dresden included, that the Geneva Conventions sought to address in
1949. Although these rules of engagement didn't exist during the
Second World War, they did in the 1990s when Azerbaijan was purposely
targeting civilians.
According to Helsinki Watch (now Human Rights Watch), "The bombs
Azerbaijani forces use are primarily 500-kilogram (half-ton) bombs and
cluster bombs. Cluster bombs explode into hundreds of small balls and
are intended to hurt people, as opposed to structures."
The attacks on Stepanakert were so severe, that Helsinki Watch issued
a report where it said that it "condemns in the strongest terms the
indiscriminate bombings and continued shelling of civilians in and
around Nagorno Karabakh, acts which violate the rules of internal
armed conflict set out in the 1949 Geneva Conventions." In fact,
Stepanakert did have a hospital - from the 1930s. It was in such poor
shape that it's a wonder the building survived the heavy damage it
sustained during the Artsakh War. The same might be said about the
people, damaged but standing tall.
Without a functioning hospital, there was no adequate medical center
with the needed technology to serve the population of Stepanakert and
environs. To address this serious and immediate concern, Armenia Fund
was tasked with building a new hospital. The humanitarian organization
was empowered by its worldwide support base and an extremely generous
donation of $22 million by Hayastan All-Armenian Fund Board of
Trustees member Samvel Karapetyan from Russia.
This project was the final piece of a ten-year healthcare development
initiative that sought to bring the level of medical attention in
Artsakh to internationally acceptable standards; the first phase was
the construction of a polyclinic.
In just over three years, Armenia Fund built a brand new hospital
according to its scrupulous standards. The facility, located in the
center of Stepanakert, is outfitted with the modern medical equipment
needed to provide patients with the quality of healthcare they
deserve. In addition to 120 hospital beds, there is a surgery
department, as well as an emergency room and urgent care unit.
Remembering the past and using it to prepare for the future, the
hospital also has a bomb-resistant underground wing that would be able
to continue to provide medical care in the event of renewed attacks by
Azerbaijan. Finally, the polyclinic, built before the hospital, is now
physically attached to it to provide ease of access for patients.
Although located in Artsakh's capital, the breadth of services offered
by the medical center make it the first stop for patients with an
array of health issues. In addition to having available high quality
healthcare, the hospital provides its services to residents free of
charge.
The old hospital, now disused, is scheduled to be demolished in fall
of 2014. Although its demolition ushers in a new era of healthcare in
Armenia - Artsakh included - it won't necessarily be a happy occasion.
It was, after all, the same hospital that not only kept standing
during the bombardment of Stepanakert and throughout the war, it
lasted long enough to allow the new building to be built. So, for the
doctors, nurses, and staff who worked there, its end will be
bittersweet.
By 1992, Armenian heroes liberated Shushi and stopped the
Azerbaijani-induced horror raining from the town upon Stepanakert. The
intrepid residents of the city emerged from their underground shelters
to continue their lives, learning during the war to live with little
food, care, or comfort. It is the resolute belief by their brethren,
Armenians throughout the world, that Artsakh's residents should not
have to relive the troubles of those days. It is upon this belief that
Armenia Fund built the Stepanakert Hospital - for today and for
posterity.
http://asbarez.com/126021/a-healthcare-hub-where-fire-once-rained/
Friday, August 15th, 2014
The newly-opened Stepanakert hospital
Stepanakert was decimated by the time heroic Armenians liberated
Shushi and stopped the inhumane bombardment by GRAD missiles of the
city. Since then, through an Armenia Fund healthcare initiative that
has built a state-of-the-art hospital and polyclinic, the city has
become a healthcare hub.
It would have been nice to have a hospital then, in 1991. The shelling
from Shushi had started in November and wouldn't stop until May of
1992. Only when Armenian forces liberated the historic Armenian town
from Azerbaijanis who were using it as a staging ground for their
attacks on the civilian population of Stepanakert.
Thousands of civilians were under fire in one of the most brutal
attacks on a civilian population, reminiscent of the firebombing of
Dresden. It was due to the unfettered killings of World War II,
Dresden included, that the Geneva Conventions sought to address in
1949. Although these rules of engagement didn't exist during the
Second World War, they did in the 1990s when Azerbaijan was purposely
targeting civilians.
According to Helsinki Watch (now Human Rights Watch), "The bombs
Azerbaijani forces use are primarily 500-kilogram (half-ton) bombs and
cluster bombs. Cluster bombs explode into hundreds of small balls and
are intended to hurt people, as opposed to structures."
The attacks on Stepanakert were so severe, that Helsinki Watch issued
a report where it said that it "condemns in the strongest terms the
indiscriminate bombings and continued shelling of civilians in and
around Nagorno Karabakh, acts which violate the rules of internal
armed conflict set out in the 1949 Geneva Conventions." In fact,
Stepanakert did have a hospital - from the 1930s. It was in such poor
shape that it's a wonder the building survived the heavy damage it
sustained during the Artsakh War. The same might be said about the
people, damaged but standing tall.
Without a functioning hospital, there was no adequate medical center
with the needed technology to serve the population of Stepanakert and
environs. To address this serious and immediate concern, Armenia Fund
was tasked with building a new hospital. The humanitarian organization
was empowered by its worldwide support base and an extremely generous
donation of $22 million by Hayastan All-Armenian Fund Board of
Trustees member Samvel Karapetyan from Russia.
This project was the final piece of a ten-year healthcare development
initiative that sought to bring the level of medical attention in
Artsakh to internationally acceptable standards; the first phase was
the construction of a polyclinic.
In just over three years, Armenia Fund built a brand new hospital
according to its scrupulous standards. The facility, located in the
center of Stepanakert, is outfitted with the modern medical equipment
needed to provide patients with the quality of healthcare they
deserve. In addition to 120 hospital beds, there is a surgery
department, as well as an emergency room and urgent care unit.
Remembering the past and using it to prepare for the future, the
hospital also has a bomb-resistant underground wing that would be able
to continue to provide medical care in the event of renewed attacks by
Azerbaijan. Finally, the polyclinic, built before the hospital, is now
physically attached to it to provide ease of access for patients.
Although located in Artsakh's capital, the breadth of services offered
by the medical center make it the first stop for patients with an
array of health issues. In addition to having available high quality
healthcare, the hospital provides its services to residents free of
charge.
The old hospital, now disused, is scheduled to be demolished in fall
of 2014. Although its demolition ushers in a new era of healthcare in
Armenia - Artsakh included - it won't necessarily be a happy occasion.
It was, after all, the same hospital that not only kept standing
during the bombardment of Stepanakert and throughout the war, it
lasted long enough to allow the new building to be built. So, for the
doctors, nurses, and staff who worked there, its end will be
bittersweet.
By 1992, Armenian heroes liberated Shushi and stopped the
Azerbaijani-induced horror raining from the town upon Stepanakert. The
intrepid residents of the city emerged from their underground shelters
to continue their lives, learning during the war to live with little
food, care, or comfort. It is the resolute belief by their brethren,
Armenians throughout the world, that Artsakh's residents should not
have to relive the troubles of those days. It is upon this belief that
Armenia Fund built the Stepanakert Hospital - for today and for
posterity.
http://asbarez.com/126021/a-healthcare-hub-where-fire-once-rained/