Farhad Saleem Mohammed Hasan (l) and Ali Muhamad Hama Amin

They hail from the Kurdish region of Northern Iraq. The region exercises considerably more autonomy than the rest of the country, having established a parliament, army, and flag of its own as Kurdistan. During Saddam Hussein’s regime, Kurds experienced multiple attacks from government security forces, including chemical gas attacks, according to published reports.

Amin, 30, is a graduate of Salahaddin Medical School in Erbil, Iraq. He conducted postgraduate work in child and adolescent psychiatry in Dohuk City, a major urban center of the Dohuk region in Kurdistan, in a program affiliated with the University of Umea of Sweden. For two years, Amin worked part-time at a facility for victims of violence. There, he said, he met children who had watched their parents executed at the hands of Saddam Hussein’s soldiers. In 2003, Amin finished a residency in general surgery, then studied for board certification in Baghdad until he left for the U.S. last year.

Hasan, 28, was born in Dohuk City. In 1991, when he was 15 years old, he and his family fled to Turkey for three months, returning after U.S. and British forces secured a "no-fly zone" over Northern Iraq. Hasan eventually attended medical school at Dohuk University. He worked part-time in the Department of Preventive Medicine at the university and part-time as a doctor in a nearby village. Until he left last year, Hasan served as a physician in the Department of Internal Medicine in Dohuk City’s teaching hospital. His wife remains in Northern Iraq with their daughter, who was born after Hasan left to pursue his studies at HSPH. He hopes that his wife and daughter will be able to attend Commencement when he graduates. Both students were interviewed recently by HPH NOW:

HPH NOW: What is the situation of the health care system in Iraq?

Hasan: It has not functioned well for many years because of [Saddam’s] regime. There’s no lack of trained health care workers in our country, but there’s a lack of quality because life has been disrupted by war for so long. For one thing, the political situation has kept people from continuing or finishing their educations. Currently, the health situation has not improved as it should, because of the violence. In the north, the health system is run by the Kurdish government and is in better shape than other parts of Iraq.

Amin: During Saddam’s reign, it’s estimated that five percent of Iraq’s resources were used for the Iraqi people. The rest was spent on Saddam’s family, feeding terrorism, and building his army. We’re just getting back to setting up an infrastructure. But, life is better now in Northern Iraq than it was before the war started.

We all have seen a lot of suffering. But, what I saw in the orphanage and treatment center was especially heart-wrenching. I worked with children who were victims of the political situation in Iraq. Many now are getting to be adults. Some don’t know if their parents are dead or alive, which is more of a trauma than knowing for sure that they are dead. Many of these children were babies when they were injured during the attacks [of Saddam’s army against the Kurds] in the early 1990s. They lived through aerial bombings of their village or watched family members being killed. I saw the extent of the horrors they lived through when they shared their experiences in artwork that was part of their therapy.

HPH NOW: What will you do next?

Hasan: In Iraqi Kurdistan, we have medical and nursing schools, but no public health schools. Public health was part of my job as a physician. In the north, we’re in transition, and I hope I can be part of the change that will take place there soon. I plan to work for the Kurdish government in Northern Iraq as a health policymaker and also as a lecturer at my school of medicine. They have already started building a more efficient health system in Iraqi Kurdistan, and I hope I will have a role in its development.

Amin: At Harvard, you have an international perspective. You see that we are all in this together. In Iraq, we’ve been in isolation for a long time, but we will be a more open society in the future and will have more access to the good things, such as new technologies and [medical advancements], but also the bad things, like SARS and HIV. My experience here will help me improve my country’s health care.

Also, since the U.S. is one of the most developed countries, I thought the health care system would be one I would learn from. I was surprised to see there is no single system and to see how non-profit and profit-making systems operate side by side. This will help us see how to put parts together to improve the health care system back home.

HPH NOW: Is the U.S. what you expected? Were you surprised that not all Americans are happy with what our government is doing in Iraq?

Amin: The benefit [of removing Saddam] is so high that [the current situation] is worth it. We thought Americans would have a certain strategic interest [in Iraq] that they would all agree upon. Now, we see that within the same School there are students with many different ideologies. The whole process of democracy is very different to us, because we couldn’t criticize the ruling government like you do. That’s one of the experiences we will be taking back home.

HPH NOW: Now that you are here, focusing on your studies at HSPH, what do you think about the MPH program?

Amin: I’m impressed with the diversity [of the students] and like the relationship between faculty and students here, especially the fact that students can ask questions and criticize.

Hasan: Networking with people from many cultures is exciting. HSPH has very rich resources. I want to take every course.

HPH NOW: Is there anything you would change to make the experience even better?

Hasan: I would like to see how different organizations and government agencies solve public health problems. I’d also like to set up communications between HSPH and my medical school back home, so that Iraqi students could share some of your rich resources. It would be a great benefit to Iraqi students, for example, if they had access to a digital library.

HPH NOW: the Iraqi election will take place on january 30. For some Iraqi citizens, this will be their first chance ever to participate in a democratic national election. Iraqis currently in the U.S. can register to vote in five cities–nashville, Chicago, Detroit, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C.–and will then need to return in less than two weeks to cast their ballots. What are your thoughts on the election?

Amin: We Iraqis look forward to voting freely for the first time in decades. This will be the first step towards real democracy. However, I am not expecting a perfect election. The security situation is bad in certain areas, which makes it difficult for some people to vote. Many people in Iraq need more time and more education to understand the principles of democracy and elections to be able to practice their voting rights as they should. However, we have to start the process of democracy and self-governing in Iraq. Despite the quality of the election, we will start the process at the end of this month with optimism and cautiousness. We hope for the best.

Hasan: It is an historic event, the first time to exercise your democratic right in Iraq’s history. I am eager to vote in this election. I am so glad that, even being so far from home, I will be able to vote. I will be traveling to Washington D.C. to vote.

--PHC