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CNN Sunday Morning
Weekend House Call
Aired March 07, 2004 - 08:42 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Twenty-six thousand tons of pharmaceuticals and supplies have been delivered to Iraq since May of last year. To put that sum in perspective, that's equal to a medium size cruise ship.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GUPTA: Along with supplies, Iraq is getting more money. Just last week, several countries agreed to give a total of a billion dollars towards reconstruction. But, even with that oil revenue money coming in, the violence and disorder continues in Iraq. So, what does the future hold?
I sat down with HHS secretary, Tommy Thompson, while he was visiting Iraq, last week.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA: Joining us now, secretary of Health and Human Services secretary, Tommy Thompson.
Mr. Secretary, thanks for joining us. Two questions for you: First of all, what is the purpose of your visit out here?
TOMMY THOMPSON, SECRETARY, HHS: The No. 1 purpose is to see how we can, from the department of Health and Human Services, rebuild the medical infrastructure in Iraq. Iraq in the 1970s was a world power as it relates to medical excellence, they have great medical school, they had great training, and people from all over the world went to Iraq to get cured from diseases. And then systematically Saddam Hussein has destroyed the medical infrastructure, the medical system, doctors are poorly trained, and they -- just because of lack of training, and now we have an opportunity to rebuild that. The second thing, of course is, is to carry the message from President Bush that the country of Iraq is a country that has got a tremendous future and what we're trying to do is really, as in a country, as the United States, is to show -- you know, that we can rebuild a country and do it a way that's going to help to enhance the quality of life of its citizens.
GUPTA: Five years from now, what is Iraq going to look like, health-wise?
THOMPSON: I think you're going to see that Iraq has the potential, and I hope it accomplishes that potential, is to be a regional medical center for excellence.
GUPTA: A lot of reports now that there is inadequate water, dirty water, there's inadequate electricity, there's poor security at hospitals and people aren't getting care and it's due to the war. What do you say to those people?
I don't think the war in and of itself, I think it was so debilitated from all the years of neglect in -- intentional neglect from Iraq, but then after the war everything -- you know, was pretty much raided by -- by the individuals that came in, they stole everything out of the clinics, took the wires out of the walls, and anything that they could they hauled off and as a result of that there wasn't anything left.
GUPTA: Medical diplomacy certainly sounds like a good idea, but a lot of people back home are going to ask, "Well, our health care system is a little broken as well, why isn't that money being spent on America?"
THOMPSON: A lot of it is coming from oil revenues, and if you are a able -- you know, to rebuild the medical system in Iraq, and of the money we invest up front, just like a Marshal Plan after the second world war, we got paid back many times over with the rebuilding of Europe. There's no question that our medical system in America is stretched and it is stressed. And we have to make improvements there, and we have to invest in our medical system in America. It's by far the best, but in order for us really to have a wonderful worldwide health system, and be able to -- you know be able to help America citizens you have to be also concerned about the world problems because diseases don't stop at the borders. People are -- all walks of life, of all ethnic groups and all religions -- you know, recognize the importance of good health and we have, as a country -- you know, we have the greatest medical system that's ever been developed and if we would export that, I think we would stand us in good stead all over the world.
GUPTA: You met a little girl today, Sama (PH), she is 8-1/2 years old she has leukemia and she comes from Iraq. We heard she would have died and got no treatment and didn't come to Jordan. Talk about her.
THOMPSON: That mother and daughter from Iraq were so appreciative. All she could say was "thank you," and she'd grab a hold of you and just say "thank you." Because, what we did and what the hospital and the staff is at the King Hussein Jordan Center -- Cancer Center is given that child hope and given that child a chance to live. And if it wouldn't be for the regional cancer center in Jordan that was really assisted by my department, through the National Cancer Institute, that hospital probably could not take care of this little girl because we, in the last couple years, have invested our professional staff and some dollars and a partnership of that center, they are capable of handling cancer cases like this little girl and other cases like this all over this region.
GUPTA: While Iraq's health care system is failing, its neighbor, Jordan, has a health care system that is flourishing. When we come back, we'll tell you how one country is helping another.
(voice-over): Coming up: We'll mete Sama, eight years old and battling cancer in a new country. Find out how Jordan is becoming a safe haven for some children who made it through the war and they are still fighting for their lives.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRUCE BURKHARDT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Environmental labels are everywhere, claiming products are organic or hypoallergenic. Labels we use to try to make the right choice for our health, for the environment. But do these labels always tell the truth?
URVASHI RANGAN, CONSUMERS UNION: We have come across a number of labels that have very few, if any, standards behind them.
BURKHARDT: Consumers Union, publishers of "Consumer Reports"" helps shoppers sort it out the wheat from the chaff on their Web site, eco-labels.org. With the site consumers can compare products and print a report card to take along when they go shopping. Eco-Labels has done the research to see which claims are real. A watchdog like Eco-Labels helps, but in the end making sure that product claims are responsible is up to the consumer, an educated consumer.
Bruce Burkhardt, CNN Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GUPTA: Welcome back to WEEKEND HOUSE CALL. Well, this time last week I was in Amman, Jordan visiting a cancer center where some sick Iraqi children were being treated.
It's hard to believe now, but Baghdad's hospitals used to be some of the regions best. But, decades of war and sanctions have left them unable to care for people battling cancer. People like Sama, she's just one of the children whose lives have by ending up in Jordan. Here's her story:
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA (voice-over): Although she might not look it now, last February this 8-year-old Sama Hussein lay dying from leukemia in a Baghdad hospital.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): The first thing we noticed, is that she was pale. Went to the doctor, found she had leukemia.
GUPTA: But, now she is in remission in a hospital in neighboring Jordan, and even being visited by the U.S. secretary of health.
Sama was found by European relief workers and she was not alone.
(on camera): True to the adage, sometimes good comes from bad, children from all over Iraq now find themselves here, at the King Hussein Cancer Center. Some will live, some will die, but all will get treatment that they otherwise would not have receive.
(voice-over): Twenty children, in all, made the two-hour flight to Amman, thousands more wish they could. Even before the war, hospitals in Iraq were not set up to take care of cancer patients. After the war, an already bad system became even worse.
(on camera): What would have happened if your daughter didn't come to Jordan.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): She would have certainly died.
GUPTA (voice-over): Now she has an 80 percent chance of survival. The cost of caring for Sama and the other children is approximately $50,000 each, treatment being covered by private benefactors, and the U.S. with the National Cancer Institute is making good on their promise to rev up the staff and technology.
Jordanian doctors here, conferring with colleagues on Ireland on U.S. provided equipment.
THOMPSON: What we did and what the hospital and the staff is -- at the King Hussein Jordan Center -- Cancer Center is given that child hope and given that child a chance to live.
GUPTA: Of course, most children won't be as fortunate as Sama, and Jordan can't be the answer for every child. Eventually Iraq will have to provide for its own.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA: Doctors in Iraq struggle to help children like Sama and the countless others who come in with more basic illnesses like pneumonia or diarrhea, but often times these infections, which are curable in the United States, can be deadly in Iraq. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kids who are on high fat or low fat diets may gain more weight than those on moderate fat diets, according to a study by the American Heart Association. The study found the healthiest diets are those with 30 to 35 percent fat.
And McDonald's is saying bye-bye to super size fries and sodas in an attempt to encourage its customers to slim down, the fast food chain claims to have extra large side orders phased out by the end of 2004. Also this week, the National Institutes of Health put a stop to an estrogen only hormone replacement study on heart disease. The NIH said a higher risk of stroke in studied participants outweighed any benefits the study may have offered. Research found estrogen alone had no effect on a patient's risk of heart disease.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GUPTA: For more information about Iraq and other countries struggling with medical crisis, click on www.who.org. That's the website for the World Health Organization. Select which country you're interested and you'll get a wealth of information on the county's health problems.
You can also go to the website for the International Red Cross, that's at www. Icrc.org. you'll find updates on their latest projects and can make donations online by clicking "Help the ICRC," that's in the upper right-hand corner. You can specify which country you'd like the money to go to or just go to those most in need.
Well, that's all the time we have for today. Continue watching CNN for updates on Iraq's road to recovery and stay tuned for more medical news, as well.
Coming up this week: A new report comes out about spinal cord injuries. Researchers say they may have found a new treatment for patients with this devastating injury.
And a study due out this week calls into question the standard advice to radiologists when checking mammograms.
CNN is the place for all you medical news. Make sure to tune in next weekend, we'll be talking about extreme baby making. Some people are traveling as far away as Lebanon to get pregnant. Then there's the experimental treatment here in the U.S. And what about IVF? Make sure to watch next weekend, we'll answer all your questions, 8:30 Eastern on WEEKEND HOUSE CALL.
I'm Dr. Sanjay Gupta. Thanks for watching.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired March 7, 2004 - 08:42 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Twenty-six thousand tons of pharmaceuticals and supplies have been delivered to Iraq since May of last year. To put that sum in perspective, that's equal to a medium size cruise ship.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GUPTA: Along with supplies, Iraq is getting more money. Just last week, several countries agreed to give a total of a billion dollars towards reconstruction. But, even with that oil revenue money coming in, the violence and disorder continues in Iraq. So, what does the future hold?
I sat down with HHS secretary, Tommy Thompson, while he was visiting Iraq, last week.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA: Joining us now, secretary of Health and Human Services secretary, Tommy Thompson.
Mr. Secretary, thanks for joining us. Two questions for you: First of all, what is the purpose of your visit out here?
TOMMY THOMPSON, SECRETARY, HHS: The No. 1 purpose is to see how we can, from the department of Health and Human Services, rebuild the medical infrastructure in Iraq. Iraq in the 1970s was a world power as it relates to medical excellence, they have great medical school, they had great training, and people from all over the world went to Iraq to get cured from diseases. And then systematically Saddam Hussein has destroyed the medical infrastructure, the medical system, doctors are poorly trained, and they -- just because of lack of training, and now we have an opportunity to rebuild that. The second thing, of course is, is to carry the message from President Bush that the country of Iraq is a country that has got a tremendous future and what we're trying to do is really, as in a country, as the United States, is to show -- you know, that we can rebuild a country and do it a way that's going to help to enhance the quality of life of its citizens.
GUPTA: Five years from now, what is Iraq going to look like, health-wise?
THOMPSON: I think you're going to see that Iraq has the potential, and I hope it accomplishes that potential, is to be a regional medical center for excellence.
GUPTA: A lot of reports now that there is inadequate water, dirty water, there's inadequate electricity, there's poor security at hospitals and people aren't getting care and it's due to the war. What do you say to those people?
I don't think the war in and of itself, I think it was so debilitated from all the years of neglect in -- intentional neglect from Iraq, but then after the war everything -- you know, was pretty much raided by -- by the individuals that came in, they stole everything out of the clinics, took the wires out of the walls, and anything that they could they hauled off and as a result of that there wasn't anything left.
GUPTA: Medical diplomacy certainly sounds like a good idea, but a lot of people back home are going to ask, "Well, our health care system is a little broken as well, why isn't that money being spent on America?"
THOMPSON: A lot of it is coming from oil revenues, and if you are a able -- you know, to rebuild the medical system in Iraq, and of the money we invest up front, just like a Marshal Plan after the second world war, we got paid back many times over with the rebuilding of Europe. There's no question that our medical system in America is stretched and it is stressed. And we have to make improvements there, and we have to invest in our medical system in America. It's by far the best, but in order for us really to have a wonderful worldwide health system, and be able to -- you know be able to help America citizens you have to be also concerned about the world problems because diseases don't stop at the borders. People are -- all walks of life, of all ethnic groups and all religions -- you know, recognize the importance of good health and we have, as a country -- you know, we have the greatest medical system that's ever been developed and if we would export that, I think we would stand us in good stead all over the world.
GUPTA: You met a little girl today, Sama (PH), she is 8-1/2 years old she has leukemia and she comes from Iraq. We heard she would have died and got no treatment and didn't come to Jordan. Talk about her.
THOMPSON: That mother and daughter from Iraq were so appreciative. All she could say was "thank you," and she'd grab a hold of you and just say "thank you." Because, what we did and what the hospital and the staff is at the King Hussein Jordan Center -- Cancer Center is given that child hope and given that child a chance to live. And if it wouldn't be for the regional cancer center in Jordan that was really assisted by my department, through the National Cancer Institute, that hospital probably could not take care of this little girl because we, in the last couple years, have invested our professional staff and some dollars and a partnership of that center, they are capable of handling cancer cases like this little girl and other cases like this all over this region.
GUPTA: While Iraq's health care system is failing, its neighbor, Jordan, has a health care system that is flourishing. When we come back, we'll tell you how one country is helping another.
(voice-over): Coming up: We'll mete Sama, eight years old and battling cancer in a new country. Find out how Jordan is becoming a safe haven for some children who made it through the war and they are still fighting for their lives.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRUCE BURKHARDT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Environmental labels are everywhere, claiming products are organic or hypoallergenic. Labels we use to try to make the right choice for our health, for the environment. But do these labels always tell the truth?
URVASHI RANGAN, CONSUMERS UNION: We have come across a number of labels that have very few, if any, standards behind them.
BURKHARDT: Consumers Union, publishers of "Consumer Reports"" helps shoppers sort it out the wheat from the chaff on their Web site, eco-labels.org. With the site consumers can compare products and print a report card to take along when they go shopping. Eco-Labels has done the research to see which claims are real. A watchdog like Eco-Labels helps, but in the end making sure that product claims are responsible is up to the consumer, an educated consumer.
Bruce Burkhardt, CNN Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GUPTA: Welcome back to WEEKEND HOUSE CALL. Well, this time last week I was in Amman, Jordan visiting a cancer center where some sick Iraqi children were being treated.
It's hard to believe now, but Baghdad's hospitals used to be some of the regions best. But, decades of war and sanctions have left them unable to care for people battling cancer. People like Sama, she's just one of the children whose lives have by ending up in Jordan. Here's her story:
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA (voice-over): Although she might not look it now, last February this 8-year-old Sama Hussein lay dying from leukemia in a Baghdad hospital.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): The first thing we noticed, is that she was pale. Went to the doctor, found she had leukemia.
GUPTA: But, now she is in remission in a hospital in neighboring Jordan, and even being visited by the U.S. secretary of health.
Sama was found by European relief workers and she was not alone.
(on camera): True to the adage, sometimes good comes from bad, children from all over Iraq now find themselves here, at the King Hussein Cancer Center. Some will live, some will die, but all will get treatment that they otherwise would not have receive.
(voice-over): Twenty children, in all, made the two-hour flight to Amman, thousands more wish they could. Even before the war, hospitals in Iraq were not set up to take care of cancer patients. After the war, an already bad system became even worse.
(on camera): What would have happened if your daughter didn't come to Jordan.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): She would have certainly died.
GUPTA (voice-over): Now she has an 80 percent chance of survival. The cost of caring for Sama and the other children is approximately $50,000 each, treatment being covered by private benefactors, and the U.S. with the National Cancer Institute is making good on their promise to rev up the staff and technology.
Jordanian doctors here, conferring with colleagues on Ireland on U.S. provided equipment.
THOMPSON: What we did and what the hospital and the staff is -- at the King Hussein Jordan Center -- Cancer Center is given that child hope and given that child a chance to live.
GUPTA: Of course, most children won't be as fortunate as Sama, and Jordan can't be the answer for every child. Eventually Iraq will have to provide for its own.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA: Doctors in Iraq struggle to help children like Sama and the countless others who come in with more basic illnesses like pneumonia or diarrhea, but often times these infections, which are curable in the United States, can be deadly in Iraq. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kids who are on high fat or low fat diets may gain more weight than those on moderate fat diets, according to a study by the American Heart Association. The study found the healthiest diets are those with 30 to 35 percent fat.
And McDonald's is saying bye-bye to super size fries and sodas in an attempt to encourage its customers to slim down, the fast food chain claims to have extra large side orders phased out by the end of 2004. Also this week, the National Institutes of Health put a stop to an estrogen only hormone replacement study on heart disease. The NIH said a higher risk of stroke in studied participants outweighed any benefits the study may have offered. Research found estrogen alone had no effect on a patient's risk of heart disease.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GUPTA: For more information about Iraq and other countries struggling with medical crisis, click on www.who.org. That's the website for the World Health Organization. Select which country you're interested and you'll get a wealth of information on the county's health problems.
You can also go to the website for the International Red Cross, that's at www. Icrc.org. you'll find updates on their latest projects and can make donations online by clicking "Help the ICRC," that's in the upper right-hand corner. You can specify which country you'd like the money to go to or just go to those most in need.
Well, that's all the time we have for today. Continue watching CNN for updates on Iraq's road to recovery and stay tuned for more medical news, as well.
Coming up this week: A new report comes out about spinal cord injuries. Researchers say they may have found a new treatment for patients with this devastating injury.
And a study due out this week calls into question the standard advice to radiologists when checking mammograms.
CNN is the place for all you medical news. Make sure to tune in next weekend, we'll be talking about extreme baby making. Some people are traveling as far away as Lebanon to get pregnant. Then there's the experimental treatment here in the U.S. And what about IVF? Make sure to watch next weekend, we'll answer all your questions, 8:30 Eastern on WEEKEND HOUSE CALL.
I'm Dr. Sanjay Gupta. Thanks for watching.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
