Disclaimer: The article contains descriptive content on the topic of the Beirut Port explosion that some readers may find triggering. Reader’s discretion is advised.
After launching this heartwarming initiative in 2020; Dr. Joe Baroud, a Lebanese Plastic Surgeon, has offered free plastic surgeries for the Beirut Blast scarred victims and thus, has saved more than 400 faces.
Dr. Joe is using his skills to erase the permanent physical scars that were left on the victims, in hopes of easing their mental scars. Victims were eased from the pain of having to see their scars on a daily basis every time they look at their reflections.
More than 7,000 people were injured by the impact of the Beirut Blast, such as the shattering of glass that leaves a permanent scar on the face or body.
Over 400 victims that suffered from major facial injuries or face burns visited Dr. Baroud’s office. As he described, the months after the explosion, the four rooms in his clinic were so full that even the hallways were filled with people.
As he told in his interview with Nas Daily, the reconstructive surgeries were directly funded by him. Everything he generated during his working day was set aside to purchase all the equipment necessary for the surgeries.
However, each of these patients is the same story from a different perspective. As Dr. Baroud said, the hardest part of this initiative was the mental aspect of it.
To put it into perspective, he did 15 surgeries every day, which totals up to 400 surgeries over the past two years. Hence, Dr. Baroud had to “hear the same story 400 times from 400 different perspectives”, which was a mental challenge each and every time.
As his patients have described him, he is now seen as a hero to his country as he has succeeded in “healing their inside and outside wounds.”
Through this noble initiative, Dr. Joe Baroud has given a second chance at a normal life for hundreds of people.
Amid the cruelty of the Beirut Blast and those behind it and the despair for justice, exceptional heroes like Dr. Baroud revive faith in humanity and in a nation that seeks to prevail.
Related: The 244+ Beirut Blast Victims, Remember Their Names
