Afshar Hospital – the centerpiece of AMOR’s cornerstone project delivering healthcare and health education in Afghanistan – reached a long-awaited milestone in April, and then promptly broke through that milestone in May.

In April, Afshar exceeded all previous records and saw 8,693 patients, marking the first time Afshar had ever seen more than 8,000 patients in the course of a month. That’s an astounding number, and a goal Afshar had long sought to reach.

But that brand-new record didn’t last long. In May, Afshar promptly broke that record, seeing a new record of 8,705 patients in a single month.

Why is that number special?

“A few short years ago, Afshar would see 3,000 to 4,000 patients in a month, and we were beginning to wonder where the upper limit for patient care would be,” said Dr. Mark Scoffield, Director of Hospital Operations for AMOR. “Afshar has come so far, moving past incredible obstacles and challenging conditions, and growing into a hospital taking on the higher-risk cases that other facilities in Afghanistan routinely turn away.”

Afghanistan remains beset by daily challenges most couldn’t imagine. In addition to facing the effects of poverty and war, much of Afghanistan still lacks basics like clean water and appropriate sanitation. Years ago, AMOR staff was surprised to learn that drains in the hospital’s kitchens ran out of a hole in the wall toward a septic system. But AMOR’s years of work and investment in Afshar have brought quality improvements ranging from equipment sterilization, improved drainage and sanitation, and continuing medical education for staff, empowering Afshar to provide quality medical care to a greater number of patients than anyone believed possible.

While wondering about Afshar’s upper limit was natural, that question had nothing to do with quality of care or staff at Afshar. “The reality is, providing quality health care in Afghanistan is a difficult thing to do at all, let alone at the rate of seeing 3,000-4,000 patients each month,” Scoffield said. “We’re quite gratified that Afshar has more than doubled the number of people helped over time, and all at a much higher standard of care than was ever available in Afghanistan before. That wouldn’t have been possible without the support of AMOR’s donors, who are helping to save lives every day through Afshar.”