Reconstruction Team Assesses Afghan Health Care

Department of Defense Photo Essay

  • U.S. Air Force Cpt. James E. Parris meets with Dr. Nadir Noori, the Paktia provincial public health director, to discuss medical needs within the Afghanistan province, Feb. 9, 2009. Parris is a physician’s assistant with the Paktia provincial reconstruction team charged with assessing the health care needs of the province, and recommending projects and purchases. DoD photo by Fred W. Baker III
  • U.S. Air Force Cpt. James E. Parris meets with officials at a midwife training facility on the Gardez provincial hospital campus in Gardez City, Afghanistan, Feb. 17, 2009. The women, ages 18 to 40, attend the free, two-year school on the condition they return to their districts to deliver care. DoD photo by Fred W. Baker III
  • A group of midwives-in-training sit in their classroom at a training facility on the Gardez provincial hospital campus in Gardez City, Afghanistan, Feb. 17, 2009. Midwives are a staple in delivering health care across the rural Paktia province. DoD photo by Fred W. Baker III
  • One of the teachers at a midwife training center in Gardez City, Afghanistan, talk about what the class needs, Feb. 17, 2009. The teachers asked for more training aids and computers to run multimedia lessons. DoD photo by Fred W. Baker III
  • Afghans sit in a dark hallway of the Paktia provincial hospital in Gardez City, Afghanistan, Feb. 17, 2009. The hospital runs its lights and lifesaving equipment using a high-powered generator, but it has only enough fuel to operate six hours a day. DoD photo by Fred W. Baker III
  • A mother rests on a bed, covered with a blanket because visitors are present, with her hours-old baby boy at the Paktia provincial hospital in Gardez City, Afghanistan, Feb. 17, 2009. Mothers and babies are discharged within six hours after delivery if there are no complications because of space limitation. DoD photo by Fred W. Baker III
  • A mother rests on the bed, wrapped in her traditional Afghan burka because visitors are present, with her hours-old baby girl at the Paktia provincial hospital in Gardez City, Afghanistan, Feb. 17, 2009. Infant mortality rate is 16 percent in this eastern Afghanistan province and 20 percent of mothers die during childbirth. DoD photo by Fred W. Baker III
  • Dr. Nadzana, left, and a midwife, show off the post-natal care room during a visit to the provincial hospital in Gardez City, Afghanistan, Feb. 17, 2009, by Paktia provincial reconstruction team members. The hospital has four delivery tables and only eight post-natal care beds. Based on limited space, babies have been delivered in the hallway. DoD photo by Fred W. Baker III
  • Four children smile for the camera at the Pakita provincial hospital’s day care in Gardez City, Afghanistan, Feb. 17, 2009. One in five children in the province die before their fifth birthday because of malnutrition and otherwise preventable diseases. DoD photo by Fred W. Baker III
  • Dr. Nadzana, one of Paktia province’s few female doctors, talks with U.S. Air Force Cpt. James E. Parris during his visit to the Paktia provincial hospital in Gardez City, Afghanistan, Feb. 17, 2009. Parris, a physician's assistant, visited the hospital to assess its medical-care needs. DoD photo by Fred W. Baker III