In hospital, mental trauma scars children disfigured by bombs

As soon as the bombs exploded outside his house in the Iraqi town of Falluja, Rachid Jassam rushed onto the street to rescue the injured.

As the teenager ran out, another plane swooped overhead and dropped more bombs, the shrapnel tearing his right leg so severely local doctorswantedto amputate it.

His father refused the amputation to spare his son from a life of disability, and opted for basic surgery instead.

“When I got injured, I didn’t lose consciousness. I witnessed the whole thing when the people came and took me to the hospital. I remember everything,” 15-year-old Jassam said through an interpreter at a Medecins Sans Frontieres hospital in Amman in Jordan.

“I lost 5 centimeters of my bone from my right leg and I couldn’t move it anymore.”

More than 20 percent of all patients at the MSF hospital are children just like Rachid — blown apart, severely burned and disfigured by conflicts in Iraq, Syria, Yemen and Gaza. Elisa Birri,

Since it opened in 2006, the hospital has treated almost 4,400 patients free of charge, and remains the only hospital in theMiddle East to perform advanced reconstructive surgery on victims of war.

But as conflicts rage across Middle East, hospital staff say resources have been stretched in recent years, with most patients coming from Syria and Yemen.

For Jassam, the clinic has been his lifeline. Sitting on his hospital bed in the Jordanian capital after receiving specialized surgery on his leg, he smiles broadly as he holds onto his crutches.

“Thank God, it’s God preservedmy leg.”

Around 60 people, mainly young men, undergo complex orthopedic, facial and burn reconstructive surgery at the hospital each month, according to MSF.

They also receive psychological care and counseling during their stay.

Clinical psychologist Elisa Birri, who heads the mental health team, said it was common for children in the hospital, especially boys, to put on a brave front. that

“They go through really big events, but you see them smiling every day, playing every day. They never stop having motivation to go on.”

This rings true for 15-yearold Jassam. Even after being severely injured and besieged by Islamic State militants for eight months, Jassam said he cannot wait to return to Falluja once he leaves the hospital.

“I want to go back, I miss it, I miss everyone there,” he said.

“I have a goat and it’s the only surviving goat and she has given birth, so there are babies waiting for me.”

They go through really big events, but you see them smiling every day, playing every day. They never stop having motivation to go on.” clinical psychologist