Michigan Chapter APPNA Newsletter · Kashif Chaudhry Khurram Ahmad WEB email [email protected] Newsletter [email protected] Dr. Kashif Qureshi is an internist in private prac-tice

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Michigan Chapter APPNA Newsletter March 2014

Dr. Fatima Hassan a primary care pediatrician practices in Monroe, MI. An Allama Iqbal Medical College, Lahore graduate, she resides in Canton, MI with her husband and amazing three daugh-ters. She enjoys her all rounder roles as a wife, mother, friend and above all a well respected phy-sician. Dear Members,

We are embarking this year with exciting and ef-fi cient set of goals to benefi t Michigan physicians from Pakistani descent. I strongly believe in giv-ing back to our community to create a positive and meaningful image of Pakistani physicians in America.

Our agenda prioritizes helping young physicians from Pakistan applying for residencies in USA. This is a crucial time in history of America when everyone is striving hard to fl ourish, specially the young physicians from Pakistan who are facing even harder challenges to prove and establish themselves in residency programs.

We can create a positive image of Pakistani com-munity only by reaching out with unbiased inten-tions to everyone. We will make sure that our ef-forts touch the hearts of local communities as well.

We are planning to provide APPNA Michigan Chapter a fi rm and long lasting structure for future as well. Your help is needed now more than at any other time in past. Please come forward and help us as I believe that this platform can do good for our community more then any other organization.

We promise that we will maintain better ongo-ing communication with all of you as well as our community in general. Its my pleasure to be a part of this unique and promising organization. Look-ing forwards to a couple of great and challenging years ahead.

Sincerely Fatima Hassan. MD.

Assalam alaikum fellow APPNA members:

I’m very happy to have the opportunity to connect with all of you. We plan on having these electronic newsletters out to you quarterly and I welcome your input, advice, and opinions on how we can better communicate with you.

As I had promised in the letter Fatima and I sent out earlier this year, we hope to make Michigan APPNA an active vital organization in the community, both locally and on a national level. To that end, we’ve already started working on the various committees and are actively engaging central APPNA in trying to fi nd ways to make a greater positive impact.

I’ve done some travelling these past few months. In December, I was in Washington DC and in Febru-ary, I attended a meeting of central APPNA in Chi-cago that focused on the structure of APPNA and the impact of the organization on a more national level. We met with many congressmen and dis-cussed J-1 visa issues. We discussed making the visa and green card process easier for immigrant physicians. At the end of this month, (Pg2 Col1)

PresidentKashif Qureshi, M.D.

Secretary/TreasurerFatima Hassan, M.D

Editorial & Media CommitteeChair M. Shahid Yousuf, M.D.Waseem Ahmad, M.D.Majid Toseef , M.D.Subhan Mandhar Membership CommitteeChair Ghulam Qadir MD Naushad Pervez MD Omer Ahmad Mentorship Committee ChairNaushad Pervez, M.D.Ashar Khan, M.D.Ghulam Qadir, M.D.Khurram Ahmad, M.D.Majid Toseef M.D.Nazia Adil, M.D.Omar Ahmad, M.D.Sarosh Anwar, M.D.Shazia Raza, M.D. Suheb Hasan, M.D. Event Hosting Com-mitteeChair Seemin Qureshi Almas AkhterAsma JilaniNazia Adil, M.D.Tahira Pervez

Volunteer CommitteeeChair Gaiti Baksh, M.D. Kashif ChaudhryKhurram Ahmad

WEBwww.appnami.org

email [email protected]

[email protected]

Dr. Kashif Qureshi is an internist in private prac-tice in the Detroit Metro Area for the last 10 years. A graduated from King Edward Medical College in Lahore, he was born and raised in Karachi, Paki-stan. He is involved in various leadership roles at Oakwood and Henry Ford health systems. He lives in West Bloomfi eld with his wife, 3 children, and his father. His large extended family has made Michi-gan their home since the 1960s. His goal is for APPNA to make a positive impact in the communi-ties we live in, to strengthen a positive image for Pakistani physicians.

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Michigan Chapter APPNA Newsletter March 2014(from Pg1 Col 1 )I will go to another AP-PNA meeting in California focused on trying to raise awareness of the infl u-ence Pakistani Physicians have in the broader physician community and try-ing to create a stronger foundation and increase APPNA’s relevancy. Locally, we’ve held a strategizing meeting, and the individual committees have started their own conference calls in order to organize and begin working on their goals. In April, Fatima and I are plan-ning to have a meet and greet in Sagi-naw in order to become acquainted with our colleagues who do not live in the Detroit area. If you are interested in sharing your ideas with us and would like more details of this scheduled meet-ing, please let me know.

I’ve also been reading the emails I’ve received from you. We’ve recognized an interest in giving back more locally and to that end we have planned for an APPNA sponsored scholarship program for students of Pakistani descent who are residents of Michigan who aim to study in the sciences. These scholar-ships will be both merit and need based and will be open to those young people who hold great potential but may lack fi nancial resources.

Ofcourse, MI-APPNA is an organization and we thrive on the generosity of our members. Please help us fi nance this scholarship program. Details are still in the works but we hope to have an Iftari in the beginning of July (July 12) that will be sponsored by board members . Our aim is to fund the scholarships from this event. We are also planning the annual dinner at which these scholarships will be awarded. We also hope to contrib-ute to APPNA house, a place for visiting physicians to live at reduced costs while they are involved in observerships and externships in the Detroit area.As you read through this newsletter, you will get a glimpse of the different committees hard at work already. You can also learn about members of the APPNA community and become better acquainted with your fellow physicians. I hope you fi nd these mailings to be in-formative and interesting. Here’s hoping our next e-newsletter comes to you in better weather!!!- Kashif Qureshi, MD

opportunities in terms of observer-ships. We are also available to pro-vide any advice or guidance with the residency application process. Please let us know if you are willing to help or are in need of professional assistance. We are happy to help.

Electronic & Media CommitteeWe are working diligently to create in-teresting e-newletters like this one!!! We are also getting ready to launch an updated APPNA website as well as a facebook page. This will make it easier for you to stay informed about MI AP-PNA events and also make it easier for you to connect with us. Membership CommitteeEvery organization is only as strong as its membership! Our job is to increase (continued Pg 3 Col 2)

COMMITTEE REPORTS

Events CommitteeThe events committee is just starting to get the ball rolling but we hope to have two great events this year. Our fi rst event is the APPNA IFTARI scheduled on July 12, 2014.

Our second event is tentatively sched-uled for Saturday, October 18, 2014. This is Our Annual APPNA dinner. Please Save the Date. We expect this evening to be a fun fi lled family orient-ed event. Please plan on bringing your whole family!!!

Mentorship CommitteeThe mentorship committee is getting organized and ready to aid any physi-cians or medical students who are not currently part of a residency program fi nd

ABOVE ( L-R) Drs. Kashif Qureshi, Waseemullah and Naushad Pervaiz at a meeting hosted by Dr. Kashif Qureshi on Feb. 8th, 2014 BELOW (L-R) Drs. Waseemullah, Naushad Pervez, M. Shahid Yousuf, Ghulam Qadir, Gaiti Baksh, Fatima Hassan and Nazia Adil

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Dr. Arsala Bakhtyar has been se-lected to participate in a fellowship offered by a leadership Academy de-signed by Oakwood Hospital and Medi-cal Center known as OPLA (Oakwood Physician Leadership Academy).Every year this academy identifi es 20-25 in-dividual Physicians who have the mis-sion and vision of a potential leader, hereby training them to excel as physi-cian leaders. The academy will teach physician leaders the discipline, skills, and critical thinking needed to initiate collaborative, patient-centered solu-tions that will transform our health care delivery system. OPLA is designed to identify and develop physicians who will provide leadership for enhanced clinical outcomes, process/program design, and cost-effective service deliv-ery innovations needed to better serve our patients, our communities and our physician colleagues. This is a 9 month fellowship that in-volves the collaborative work of physi-cians to attend sessions, identify men-tors which are great leaders among the organization and complete a project that provides a solution to the genuine problem within the organization. Dr. Arsala Bakhtyar will be graduating in October 2014. Post graduation, physi-cians are given the opportunities to ex-cel as leaders wthin the organization. It is a highly competitive fellowship where out of hundreds of applications, 20-25 physicians are selected each year. Arsala Bakhtyar,MD, Pediatrics/Pe-diatric Infectious Diseases,Pediatric Student Clerkship Director, Oakwood Hospital Dearborn, MI.

Dr. Busharat Ahmad Awarded IMG of The Year Award

At is recently concluded meeting in Lansing, MI the Michigan State Medi-cal Society ( MSMS )awarded the 2013 International Medical Graduate (IMG) Award to Dr.Busharat Ahmad. He was the fi rst chair of the IMG Section of MSMS and later also the fi rst chair of IMG Section of American Medical Association. Affectionately known as Mr.IMG, Dr. Busharat Ahmad has been at the forefront of the struggle for equal-ity of opportunity and treatment under State and National laws of the US.

The treatment of IMGs in many states was discriminatory with putting the bur-den of proof of medical competency upon the IMGS in the form of hurdles. For example whereas US medical graduates (USMGs) were required to have residencies of only one to gain licensure where as in the same state the IMGS were required to have three years of postgraduate residency re-quirement. This was done under the presumption of lack of competency of IMGs and potentially for the safety of the patients. The perception created by this requirement in the eyes of the patients was that somehow the training and competence of IMGS was sub par and the knowledge half baked. That is the reason why IMGs needed extra coaching. This simple historical fact is not known to many IMGS themselves if they arrived to US in the mid 1980s or beyond. The new IMGs faced no such discrimination and are unaware of the struggles that lasted many years for equality in the house of medicine to become the norm. (CONTINUED ON PAGE 11 COL 1 BUSHARAT)

(COMMITTEE REPORTS ) APPNA’s membership and to ask mem-bers to volunteer their time and efforts to help the community through our or-ganization. During the months of April & May, we are offering Lifetime MI APPNA memberships for a reduced nominal one time fee of $300.

Community Outreach Committee--Our main efforts are focused on mak-ing sure that we, as medical profession-als, take part in philanthropic efforts, not only in Pakistan, but here in Michigan as well. We are trying to partner with a local hospital system and organize a Free Health Clinic Day for the uninsured in the early Fall. If you are interested in volunteering your time, please contact us!

ALMOST PERFECT SCORES INUSMLE

Why Pakistanis score 99%

While individual merit plays a role in producing excellent doctors, other factors are equally responsible for this brilliance. What are those factors? AP-PNA Houses of Detroit and New Jersey are like educational campuses. There is peer to peer tutoring at these facilities. Additionally there is mentoring e.g. Dr. Majid Toseef who dedicates his spare time in holding classes on an ongo-ing basis in addition to running APPNA House in Detroit. The USMLE group of 1200 on FaceBook of King Edward Medical College (KEMU) provides valu-able support and guidance in extern-ships, visa rules and interviews. Wom-en’s quarters in APPNA Houses have produced large number of successful acceptances. Interactions with senior doctors from APPNA and mentoring also fi ne tunes the process. KEMCAANA computer lab had two competing ideas regarding access to internet, one was more desktop com-puters. Mr. Jamal Hamadani (son of a KEMCOLIAN) proposed free campus wide WiFi connectivity. Students could upgrade their own laptops, high speed internet was free. He funded state of the art WiFi tower and wireless access points at every 300 feet. This year’s success rate of candidates can perhaps also be attributed in part to free WiFi.

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Member BOTNJ APPNA 2013NJ APPNA

President 2007

DOGANAPresident 2008

Executive Council2004-2007

Publications Committee 2005

Constitution & Bylaws Committee Co-Chair 2006

National Health CareInitiative Chair 2010

ResourceCommittee Chair 2009

Secretary 2010National Health CareInitiative Chair 2013

Executive Council2004-2006

Constitution & BylawsCommittee Chair 2007

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

DOGANA

APPNA

NEW JERSEYAPPNA

www.NasarQureshi.com

Together

with our dedication and

commitment, we can fulfill

our dream and vision for

APPNA

and make it the

organization it

deserves to be.

• Complete transparency and improved governance in all aspects of organization

• Institute long-term sustainable projects to ensure financial stability of organization

• Sustained programs to involve and provide leadership role to N. American medical students and graduates

• Effective membership incentives

• Strengthening resources and advocacy for young Pakistani Physicians

• Community wide outreach; ranging from organizing free clinics to programs dedicated to youth, including leadership development and career guidance

• Effective advocacy of professional and social issues

THE TIME IS NOW.

ow more than ever before, we, the members are responsible for determining

the future direction of APPNA, following the true democratic traditions that we as

an organization have embodied over years. Together we have the responsibility to

strengthen the vision and processes laid down by hard work of many, and ensure

APPNA’s growth, and its relevance here, and our beloved homeland.

TEAMWORK

Proven Leadership With A Commitment To Excellence

Goals Vision&

APPNAELECT 2015

President

Nasar Qureshi Nfor

A Proven History of Dedication and Commitment to APPNA

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Saving a Gem (written in April 2013)

by M. Shahid Yousuf

He was born in a dusty nondescript town of Pakistan. If the name of that town is mentioned, the listener won-ders if it is a village, tehsil, district or division of a province. Not much hap-pens here. No motorcade of VIPs with truck loads of security apparatus breeze through its streets. To the high and mighty of Pakistan this place may not even exist. To be born here is to have ones destiny writ large across the decades of ones existence. That desti-ny is a lifetime of poverty and hardship. People live and die here within a few miles of where they were born.His father who had 11 brothers and a sister, was also born here and so was his mother, a second cousin of his fa-ther. Hard as living was his father as-pired to make something of himself, graduated from high school, went on to college and obtained a B.A. but could not go further. He had to get going in the business of life for there were oth-ers to feed and educate. And so his father joined the government service becoming a clerk, a post that he con-tinues to occupy to this day as he looks forward to his retirement and to his el-dest son’s welfare.It is this eldest son that the rest of this article is all about. He tells me that his father encouraged him to study as hard as he could and achieve success through what the books would teach him about life and its lessons. Reading , writing and learning was what life was mostly about. That meant sacrifi cing many things we take for granted here. But it was a loving home of 3 sisters and a brother.Early on he excelled so much in school that the majority of his school years he did not have to pay fees as he was awarded a scholarship. When he went to a government college, his scholar-ships followed him there and when he entered medical college there too he maintained not only the scholarship eli-gibility but also throughout his career in the medical college he maintained his grades being in the fi rst 10 positions of his alma mater for the 4 professional exams.With this stellar career, his success by

no means a sure bet. If he wanted to proceed to the US for further study just the exams for USA which take about 2 years more and cost an average of Rs 1 million to Rs. 2 million. Just where can such a sum be amassed on a clerk’s salary?His only hope lay in the various schol-arships that the alumni of King Edward Medical College have arranged over the years. He was a recipient of the KE scholarship program while he was a student at KEMU ( Kind Edward Medi-cal University). His merit had taken him just so far. After this it was to be joining government service or private practice and be one of the many MBBS gradu-ates that fl ood the medical scene in the cities. Being of humble origins he was not going to get a grade 21 Pakistan civil service job as some with connec-tions but devoid of merit are prone to do. His only hope lay in getting the coveted Sajjad Hamdani Scholarship (SHS) of US $ 7000. This would pay for his travel to the USA and he would be able to take his last USMLE examinations. This SHS is serious business. You can-not just get up one fi ne day and make a few cell phone calls and expect to be interviewed. In fact you would be some 5 years too late. In order to be seen by this SHS committee you have to main-tain a position of being amongst the fi rst 10 in each of the four professional examinations. This he had done. Ad-ditionally you had to score 90% or more marks in the USMLE process. Lucky for our doctor this too he had done. Earlier he been the top position overall for his BISE examinations ( inter ) a feat that admitted him to the oldest medical col-lege of Pakistan. A college that is older than most medical colleges of USA.Pinning his hopes on the last chance to reach USA, he applied for the SHS. The fateful day arrived and he present-ed himself. It was winter 2012. AP-PNA was in Lahore. He wondered what chance did he have.There were 7 candidates that met the high standards of the selection pro-cess. The order of appearance of the candidates was randomized and as luck would have it he was the last. By the time his turn came it was late in the day, daylight and his hopes dimming by the minute. Of the 7 panelists two of the selectors were doctors from Pakistan,

the rest were APPNA members from USA. Not only was it late in the day but four of the panelists had departed, having already made up their mind or for other reasons. With a heavy heart he entered the room and answered the questions to the best of his ability. As is customary he was told at the end of the interview that they will be in touch with him.And now for the anti climax. He learned that he had not been chosen as there was another more meritorious than him in the eyes of the committee. The story would have ended there and then but that is not all. The eyes of that remain-ing committee were not only seeing him but his demeanor and his simplic-ity, sincerity and the hurdles he had to overcome. That touched the heart of one of the members of this selection committee. Fate is a funny thing. You never know when your chips are down and when they are not. In those fl eeting moments this one member’s heart was touched. This APPNA member could not leave Pakistan with this candidate left to fend for himself. This is not how the mem-ber felt it was supposed to end. Things went into a hyper mode from that point onwards. Frantic phone calls went out to salvage this bright boy from losing his dream and the dreams of his fam-ily. Funds began to be raised in large chunks and as his papers were in or-der, his air ticket was arranged outside of the SHS purely on the basis of his meritorious case. This was not a case of the son of the rich and infl uential. He brought with him no sifarish, no pres-sure tactics. He was his own man, take him as he is. With barely two weeks for his next step of his USMLE exami-nations in the USA his air fare was ar-ranged. Yes, miracles do happen, even in Paki-stan. Today at some 4 o’clock , I had the privilege of meeting this remarkable young doctor at APPNA Doctors House of Detroit (ADHD). I can see why he im-pressed the APPNA-KEMCAANA dele-gation. He is humble and unassuming. We sat on the fl oor as he told me his life story. Many details which are interest-ing have been left out to preserve his privacy. In my mind he will rise to the pinnacle of whatever fi eld he chooses. POSTSCRIPT He was accepted in a residency in USA , March 2014 match.


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Rebirthing Munirabad Since none of us is from Munirabad, Tehsil Kot Addu, Muzaffargarh Dis-trict, Punjab, no one knows when Mu-nirabad was founded. The articles of incorporating it as a village must be lying somewhere in district headquar-ters under some moth eaten fi les and dusty registers. It may have been there before the Mughals set foot on Indus plains or when the British were driven out and Pakistan came into being. Or it could have been a recent phenome-non. What we do know is when it disap-peared. It disappeared in the fl oods of 2010. We know that for sure it was not there during the fl oods. Houses fl ood-ed fi rst then swept away as mud walls dissolved, crumbled and washed up in the Arabian sea. Nothing was left. No animals, no houses, no possessions. How high was the water level asked Dr. Aisha Najib of Karam Mai. Karam Mai said that the water was even higher than her head (1). She also said that when she returned to the village after the fl oods there was not even a glass to drink water out of.The residents returned after the fl ood bereft of all their belongings. They slept mostly under the sky and the elements such as winds, sun, cold, mosquitoes and so on. There were some distribu-tions of clothes, blankets and food but they remained without any dwellings to speak of. The village was rediscovered by an APPNA delegation which had come to Farooqabad a village which was adopted by King Edward Medical College Alumni Association of North America (KEMCAANA). Dr. Manzoor Tariq and Dr. Mubashir Rana toured the area and were informed of the plight of Munirabad which existed only as a memory of what it had been and to which resilient dwellers had returned. The old Munirabad was just a memory. It was at this juncture in Dec 2010 that a policy decision was taken to rebuild Munirabad and give the homes free of cost to its inhabitants. APPNA was fortunate to have a volun-teer Mr. Babar Mughal who agreed to work without compensation. Mr Mughal had a job at a local oil company and was well provided for by Pakistani stan-

dards. When APPNA tried to compen-sate him for his petrol consumption he refused and became upset. Instead he advised APPNA to make another home with the money they had decided to give him. The year 2011 saw a change of guard at APPNA. APPNA had already done fund raising during 2010 and over a million US dollars were accumulated. Some quarter of a million was ear-marked for Samar Bagh KPK. Muni-rabad did not have an allocation to speak of in 2010. It was just APPNA’s zabaan. A commitment verbally made to build 120 houses and no more. No fancy legal language, articles of incor-poration, it was just eeman of APPNA , a covenant if you will with the poor and humble of Pakistan. The Social Welfare & Disaster Relief Committee 2011 took ownership of this project conceived in the previous year. Now the earnest task was to get the matter going. Funds were slow in com-ing. The fi rst 22 houses had been com-pleted by the time Ghulam Bashir and Karam Mai spoke to us. At that stage we had funds for just 40 more. Social Welfare & Disaster Relief Committee released funds for these taking the total to 62 but no where near 120 to which APPNA had committed. By the time we had come home from St. Louis APPNA Convention 2011 we had run out of funds and some $70,000 had to be generated some how, any how but had to be done now. The home building is an uninterruptable process.

Once the mistries (artisans) are un-employed they drift to seek work else-where. They many never return. It is an assembly line process and cannot be disturbed. Both Ghulam Bashir and Karam Bibi informed us that the lines on the ground for the next 40 homes had been demarcated at the time of the Dr. Aisha Najib interview (July 16th, 2011). Dr. Aisha Zafar , Chair Social Welfare & Disaster Relief Committee 2011 wor-ried about it as did other members of this committee. Sometime in July or August 2011 came an appeal for shoes for the school going children of Muni-rabad. That was completed in good time. The real worry remained how to get some $70,000. The villagers were eager for APPNA to house them. They had waited for over one year.No organization can go forward without good and committed leaders. Without a head the organization withers and be-comes a hollow mental construct. Hap-pily APPNA is not such an organization. Year after year it inspires dedicated men and women to come forward and lead the expatriate physicians to sac-rifi ce what they have for the good of others without ever expecting anything in return. Taking the lead Dr.Manzur Tariq personally donated $ 25,000. With that the dam burst. The huge res-ervoir of human kindness ever present in APPNA members found expression. Checks came fl ooding in. They came with electronic web method and they came by US mail. Donations from all states near and far fl ooded APPNA of-fi ces causing an accounting nightmare. Money was pouring in, in all forms shapes and sizes. Neither Dr. Manzoor Tariq nor Dr.Aisha Zafar could keep the count up. Some funds came after members read this article ( in 2011)( Post Script Page 10 Col 1 )

Sonia of Munirabad hopes to become a doctor. Background shows APPNA Free Dispensary operational for 2 years.

First 20 free homes recipients

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“I have worked hard over the years to make our organization strong and powerful. I have walked up the ladder — working in many different capacities entrusted to me.” Tariq Shahab


(continued from pg 9 postscript) Munirabad is completed. Over 137 brick homes with attached bathroom and a septic tank have been constructed. It is quite pos-sible that from that humble village a girl or a boy will become a doctor, come to USA, join APPNA and who knows even ascend to the Presidency of APPNA. Additionally a school has been built, the dispensary ran for over 2 years. There is a water fi ltration system for use of the villagers. An additional 40 homes were constructed in an adjacent village of Sadiqabad

M. Shahid Yousuf

(1) Karam Mai says that the water was higher than her head at 31 min 8 seconds of the recorded interview. http://www.appnawalla.com/chamau-dio/ASHNJB.mp3(2) Some of the photos of the Muni-rabad Project are on APPNA Face-book 2011

APPNA Free Clinic at Munirabad was operational for over two years and was funded in part by the St. Louis Chapter of APPNA. It served a number of surroinding villages. (Photo Courtesy Babar Mughal)

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BUSHARAT CONTINUED FROM PG 3 Col 1) Recounting the struggles Dr. Ahmad said that IMGs realized that the main partner in changing discriminato-ry practices against IMGs would have to be the American Medical Associa-tion. The problem was how to convince AMA. Through many informal meetings it became apparent that AMA would have to have an IMG Section within the AMA where the equality issue could be advanced. This meant that the House of Delegates would need to vote for its creation. The fi rst year such a resolu-tion was placed on the fl oor of the AMA House of Delegations, it was voted down in the reference committee.

The IMGS were back again next year and it was full court press. The line of speakers was lined several deep. Those opposed to the IMGS were out in full force also. It was a showdown. The delegation from the South was special-ly forceful. They were not having any of this equality drama. Most sessions last between 9 am and 12 noon. This one lasted from 10 am to 6 pm. The longest such reference committee debate in the memory of long time members of

AMA and perhaps longest of all times had never taken so long. Despite the best preparation, this second round too was lost and the reference committee was unmoved and the IMGs lost.

By the third year in the AMA struggle just to have an IMG section was look-ing like a fools paradise. Some mem-bers worried if it was worth their while to come year after year and make the same arguments and face the seem-ingly impenetrable wall of irrationality of the delegates who could not see the damage that this attitude was doing to this institution itself. . The question was whether this struggle was futile and a fools paradise. Not to be discouraged the IMGs held many strategic sessions, conference calls and took time to come to AMA to launch the third drive. This time the reference committee sent the matter to the House of Delegates for a vote. By this time some minds were changing. The momentous change in AMA came in the form of a storm and shook the House to its core . Dr. Dan-iel “Stormy” Johnson, AMA President (1996-1997) rose to address the House of Delegates. He said that the IMGs

had been coming year after year and that he had been listening to them. He said he was convinced by their argu-ments. Dr. Johnson said that “They have convinced me”. It was a defi ning moment. Six more speakers spoke and the matter was put to a voice vote. The yeas noted their agreement. There was no dissent. The IMG Section vote had been won. This gave legitimacy to the concerns of the IMG. As things developed, Dr. Busharat Ahmad went on to be the fi rst chair of the IMG Section of AMA representing all IMGs at this prestigious American medical institution.

Newsletter SubmissionsThe Michigan Chapter newslet-

ter encourages members to submit items of interest to the readership, announcements, news of appoint-

ments, awards received, new mem-bers who have moved in Michigan

and similar items.Email [email protected]

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BABY RAYAN CUREDRayan, son of Pakistani immigrants in USA was diagnosed with ALL (acute lymphocytic leukemia). His parents Sar-ah and Farhan brought the bone mar-row drive to Pakistan after a match was not found in USA Bone Marrow Registry. APPNA joined this effort to save Rayan who was 3 years old at the time. “ He is now healthy and has returned from Umra which he performed with his par-ents” said Dr.Aisha Zafar ( Chair Social Welfare and Disaster Relief Commit-tee2011 (SWDRC). ” In 2007, APPNA took an initiative to join with the South Asian Marrow As-sociation of Recruiters (SAMAR) to increase the number of South Asian Donors in USA. APPNA’s endeavor in saving Rayan will be a prototype project to revitalize this initiative. APPNA will launch a National Bone Marrow Reg-istry Drive on February 25, 2011 at lo-cal mosques after Friday prayers and at other locations around the nation. I have requested SWDRC to organize this drive. (Dr. Manzoor Tariq APPNA President 2011)

Dr. Aisha ZafarThe drives then went full steam ahead. APPNA volunteers held these drives in many cities and included mosques, mandirs and gurdwaras. Bone Marrow Drives were held in Pakistan, Dubai, UK and elsewhere. Articles were written in the world press including in Pakistan. http://tribune.com.pk/story/121455/cure-rayan-drive-take-a-cheek-swab-test-save-a-life/ Dr. Aisha Zafar reported that the bone marrow match of Rayan came from Jen a Harvard University graduate of Irish descent, who practised law and now has joined medical school. Rayan’s parents reported that the match was 90% and that the parents could not wait further for the health of Rayan to deteriorate any further. The parents have asked for continuing help from APPNA

Dr. Munir Abidi , Associate Professor, Wayne State University Medical Direc-tor, Stem cell Laboratory had been con-tacted by Rayan family . Dr. Abidi said “It is important for our community to realize that there is go-ing to be a growing need for cord blood and unrelated donor in the near future. This is due to the rising incidence of hematological cancer. Some of these cancers are curable with bone marrow/stem cells transplant. Unfortunately, time is not on patient’s side if there is not enough representation of minorities in the registry. We can at least donate cord blood at the time of birth in the family. This will eventually increase the number of cord bloods in the registry bank.

THANK YOU APPNA

The following letter was received from a young woman doctor, a few days before the publication of this newsletter. Sev-eral such letters have been received over the years. The letter points to spe-cial needs for women doctors and how these have been addressed. This year we have had the maximum number of women doctors who were matched in residency programs.

Sometimes mere words are not enough to express your feelings, but I feel it as my obligation to write a glimpse of my experience hoping that it might make a difference somewhere. I had to travel to USA for my CSA exam. Having no family or even remote rela-

tives, I was expecting to face a cultural shock and several other problems out of which accommodation was a big ques-tion mark for me. I contacted some of my friends and they told me to contact Majid Bhai. I had never known this per-son so I wrote an email to him asking help in arranging an accommodation. His response was immediate and en-couraging. I went to USA. When I reached at the bus terminal, a car was already there to receive me . Upon inquiring I was told that this is a car from APPNA, and it is a tradition to receive everyone even if it is 5am in the morning. I was taken to Cathedral Tow-er Apartments, where I stayed for two months and prepared for my exam with peace of mind under the supervision of seniors.Here I really want to say thanks to AP-

PNA on the behalf of all the students for their unwavering support and help. It is only with their help that we have a place where we can live together, study together and help each other. I have not got my result yet and I don’t know what that would be, but I have learnt the most important thing of my life in USA, that is to help others without expecting anything in return, because life is a beautiful circle and somehow your good deed will come back to you. I want to ask all of you to please help others in whatever capacity you have. It might seem small to you but it can make a big difference in someone’s life. (Anonymous)

Documents

Michigan Chapter APPNA Newsletter · Kashif Chaudhry Khurram Ahmad WEB email [email protected] Newsletter [email protected] Dr. Kashif Qureshi is an internist in private prac-tice