Second language just what doctor ordered

  • Published
  • By Capt. Carrie Clear
  • 447th Air Expeditionary Group Public Affairs
BAGHDAD INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, Iraq (AFPN) --  Imagine how frightening it must be to lie in a hospital bed and not be able to understand the people taking care of you. Now imagine how frustrating it would be if you are the doctor or nurse trying to care for a patient who cannot tell you where they hurt.

A call went out Jan. 3 for anyone who spoke Bulgarian or Russian to help medical professionals at the 447th Expeditionary Medical Squadron here. They needed to gather information from three Bulgarian soldiers who were injured when a suicide bomber drove a fuel truck into their building.

Airman 1st Class Eyal Filkovsky, of the 447th Air Expeditionary Group, answered the call. He learned Russian as a child.

“My parents emigrated from Russia to Israel, where I was born, then to the (United States) when I was 7. I grew up learning Russian and translate for my grandparents,” he said.

Upon his arrival at EMDS, Airman Filkovsky was whisked into the tent to gather information the doctors needed to treat their patients.

“I was pulled in several directions at once,” he said. “The doctors said to tell (the Bulgarians) they would be OK and to get their names, date of birth and find out if they had any medical allergies. Later they had me get their unit information and ask them how they were injured.

“You hear about things on the news but don’t realize how real it is until you see it first hand,” Airman Filkovsky said. “When you see the outcome, it makes you appreciate life more.”