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Dr. Chris Coppola shares his experiences and favorite reads
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Dr. Chris Coppola, an Iraq War pediatric surgeon, will discuss his newly released book, Coppola: A Pediatric Surgeon in Iraq, which was released online on Nov. 1, 2009. The book chronicles Dr. Coppola's journey through two tours in Iraq as a pediatric surgeon with the air force and his heroic efforts to treat Iraqi children.
If you missed the first part of the interview, check it out.
Explain a little bit about how the hospital in Iraq differed from a traditional hospital setting.
Our hospital in Iraq was the most advanced and capable medical facility in the country, and likely still is now. In our expeditionary setting, we had CT scans, angiography, a blood bank, intensive care units, and diverse surgical specialties to include vascular, orthopedic, cardiothoracic, ENT, ophthalmology, urology, neurosurgical, dental, and pediatric. We handled incredible injuries and were able to achieve a survival rate of 92 percent, which is a significant improvement from prior wars.
We did this all in a series of canvas tents without solid walls. When the sandstorms came the wind would blow clouds of dust under the tent flaps, and during the rainy season, the floors ran red with a flow of sticky mud an inch deep. I have worked in many hospitals around the world, and that tent hospital was more capable than most of them.
Author Dr. Chris Coppola
What kinds of obstacles or adaptations did you make while treating children in Iraq?
One of the biggest obstacles was that the security, energy, and medical infrastructure of the country was destroyed by the war. Even if we saved children's lives, once we discharged them from the hospital, we had no way of knowing if they would survive the next week. If a patient had a colostomy, they would come back to the hospital with a towel soaked in stool wrapped around their waist since there was no way to get colostomy bags. If a child had a leg amputated, they would spend the rest of their lives sitting on a rug because there was no easy access to a prosthetic limb or even a wheelchair. With the poor living conditions, electricity would be out for days. That led to all too common burns when a variety of fuels were used for cooking fires or generator fuel. As a rule, the children were so malnourished that they appeared to be half as young as their actual age, and this malnutrition made it very difficult for them to heal wounds.
Another conflict I faced is that commanders did not always agree with my insistence on treating children. It is true that our hospital’s purpose was to cure combat injured troops, but the war was being fought house to house and street to street, so whenever there was an explosion or small arms fire, children were just as likely to get hurt as soldiers, sometimes more so.
While writing Coppola: A Pediatric Surgeon in Iraq, did you encounter writer's block and how did you overcome it?
I wrote the book as a series of letters home to families and blog entries dedicated to the people who were giving me spiritual support. I found that I had terrible insomnia in Iraq and I turned to writing during my sleepless nights. In contrast to writer's block, I found that often I could not stop writing. When the sun would rise over my hooch, I would realize that I had been writing for eight hours straight without stopping. Once I started to release the painful scenes I had witnessed, it was hard to stop.
After I had returned home, I set to the task of taking these long letters home and distilling them into a message of what I thought my time in Iraq had taught me about war and the people who suffer its effects. I found as I reviewed my stories, it felt like acid in my wounds. Frequently, I felt blocked and deeply upset to relive the events and I would have to put the work down for a spell. I felt if the story I was telling was important enough to share I would find the strength to return to it.
Please share up to five of your latest books you've read that you enjoyed and what you liked about them.
Before I had gone to war, I had the impression that it was horrible and good for nothing, and my own experience only confirmed this. Since returning, I have found that I am drawn to read literature about war to try and find how others have settled the experience.
Generation Kill by Evan Wright: This account of the Recon Marines advance to Baghdad in 2003 by an embedded journalist gave me a picture of the hundreds of injured troops I had treated on my two tours. I liked this work because it confirmed my belief that a U.S. marine will take any objective, no matter what the personal risk, all the time retaining their own individual humor and immaturity when moments of rest come between battles.
Warlord: No Better Friend, No Worse Enemy by Ilario Pantano: LT Pantano was brought up for court martial charges of murder for killing two Iraqi insurgents in 2004. He gives a very detailed and personal account of the confusing nature of events in war when seen from the enemy's perspective. I was struck by the authors intensely personal struggle and how the military to which he dedicated his service left him to fight on his own.
Backyard Ballistics by William Gurstelle: My sons and I love building anything and everything, whether it works or not. Gurstelle's precise plans with historical reference have helped us build tennis ball cannons, potato guns, and catapults. I love the way this book brought us together around an objective.
Reading Lolita in Tehran, A Memoir in Books by Azar Nafisi: My trauma czar commander in Iraq suggested this book to me. I was struck by the author's bravery, and strength of will in being able to keep alive a spirit of freedom and protest, even as the religious authority in the country became more oppressive and intolerant.
Final Exam, A Surgeon's Reflections on Mortality by Dr. Pauline Chen: This work by a personal hero and role model examines the way surgeons deal with the pain and loss of losing a patient while keeping their humanity and connection with people in their care. This book was great for me because it gave me a glimpse into the thinking and feeling of a doctor I have long admired.
To read some sample chapters, check out his Web site and his blog. For information about the organizations receiving a 10 percent donation from each sale of Dr. Coppola's book, click here.
Savvy Verse & Wit also is hosting Dr. Coppola as he discusses his writing and experiences with publication.
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