Insider Update: Meet Dr. Rasha Khoury, MSF USA’s Board of Directors President

Since then, I have completed five more surgical assignments in Afghanistan, Ivory Coast, Iraq, and Lebanon, where I spent more than a year. Every assignment has been deeply meaningful, but some experiences and patients stand out in my mind, like little Saabira.

I first met 12-year-old Saabira when she was rushed to our clinic in Mosul, Iraq. An airstrike on her home left only two survivors, Saabira and her father, who carried Saabira out of the wreckage. She had a 20-centimeter shrapnel injury down her back—enormous for somebody so little.

Saabira means “a patient woman,” something this sweet 12-year-old girl showed during her weekly visits. Now, she needed to get through her final appointment: Removal of the many stitches down her back.

Her father held her in his arms, trying to soothe her as she cried. The trauma team asked me to help because they thought a female face might comfort her. Whether we’re pediatricians or obstetricians, surgeons or psychiatrists, our goal is to do whatever it takes to most effectively treat our patients.

In this case, it meant singing Saabira a little song to calm her as I finished removing the stitches. She giggled as I sang, a welcome sound after her tears. I still remember her waving goodbye as she left, smiling and clutching a latex glove we’d blown into a balloon as a gift.

These are the moments that show what MSF is all about. We go where children like Saabira need us, crossing borders and battle lines, with a singular focus: Providing the highest quality medical care in the world’s most challenging contexts.

But none of this work would be possible without your compassion and generosity. Our generous donor community provides financial independence that means we can act quickly and impartially—guided by medical ethics instead of politics, funding concerns, and other potential distractions.

Support from individuals like you plays an especially critical role in our international movement because MSF USA is one of the largest sources of funding for our global movement. Your support funds our programmatic work, ensures we draw public attention to humanitarian emergencies, and allows MSF to advocate for our patients to get the care they deserve.

That means that MSF USA has a particular responsibility to ensure this money is well spent, and it is why, in my new role as Board President, I am committed to ensuring that our funding mechanisms represent our priority of centering equity and accountability.

I am honored to serve in this position and excited to support the breadth of MSF’s lifesaving work together. And perhaps, we might even inspire a little girl somewhere to think about how she can make a difference, too.

Thank you again for your support towards our lifesaving work. I know I speak for everyone at MSF USA when I say that we are honored by the trust you put in us.