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GW HOSPITAL PROVIDES FREE CARE TO INJURED PALESTINIAN TEEN
15-year-old Saleh Al-Hajin has Deadly Aneurysm as a Result of Tank Shell Explosion
MEDIA CONTACT Marti L. Harris, 202-715-4447
marti.harris@gwu-hospital.com
WASHINGTON- 15 year-old Saleh Al-Hajin was severely injured when a tank shell exploded last September, leaving several flechettes, or darts, lodged into the boy's body. The flechettes caused Saleh serious injury including an aneurysm near a major artery. While currently stable, the aneurysm acts as a time bomb; it could rupture at any time, causing sudden death.
The George Washington University Hospital agreed to provide free medical services to Saleh after being contacted by the Palestine Children's Relief Fund (PCRF).
"After surviving such an attack only to learn that his mother, brothers and cousin did not, we wanted to give Saleh a reason to smile," said Dan McLean, CEO of The George Washington University Hospital. "I am honored to be able to assist PCRF in providing the necessary care so Saleh can resume his childhood and spend time with his father."
Steve Sosebee, CEO and founder of PCRF, routinely travels to the organization's office in the West Bank. After Sosebee learned of Saleh's situation from his network of PCRF volunteers, he visited the boy and his family.
"The Al-Hajin family has experienced such devastation, so I'm pleased we were able to at least coordinate free travel and medical care," said Sosebee. "The family has expressed to me their sincere appreciation not only for our assistance, but for the doctors and nurses that will be providing exceptional care so that Saleh can return, happy and healthy, to Gaza."
Saleh will undergo the procedure upon his arrival at The George Washington University Hospital; his recovery is expected to take two weeks, at which point he will return to Gaza to be reunited with his father. GW physicians are optimistic that Saleh will make a full recovery.
PCRF (www.pcrf.net) is an American non-political, non-profit medical relief organization established in 1991 to provide cost-free medical care to children of the Middle East. Since then, it has brought 150 Arab children to the United States to receive treatment. Hundreds more children have also benefited from international surgical missions to the West Bank and Gaza organized and sponsored by PCRF.
Since July 1997, The George Washington University Hospital has been jointly owned and operated by a partnership between The George Washington University (www.gwu.edu <http://www.gwu.edu>) and a subsidiary of Universal Health Services, Inc. (www.uhsinc.com <http://www.uhsinc.com>), one of the nation's largest hospital management companies.
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| Earth, a planet hungry for peace |
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| The Israeli apartheid (security) wall around Palestinian population centers (Ran Cohen, pmc, 5/24/03). |
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| The Israeli apartheid (security) wall around Palestinian population centers in the West Bank (Ran Cohen, pmc, 5/24/03). |
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