Marines and soldiers who suffered disfiguring injuries in Iraq and Afghanistan are receiving advanced plastic and reconstructive surgery at UCLA Medical Center under a partnership between the center and the military's top hospital for burn victims.
So far, five Marines and four soldiers have undergone surgery at UCLA. One was injured in Afghanistan, the others in Iraq. More patients are scheduled to arrive in coming weeks.
Military brass, UCLA officials and philanthropist Ronald Katz have discussed expanding the program to include other medical specialties and hospitals. Katz has donated about $1 million to the program, called Operation Mend, and helped to raise more than $10 million.
The goal is to provide advanced treatment for military personnel who have undergone surgery and rehabilitation at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, a world leader in the treatment of burn victims.
Katz serves on the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center board of advisors and has also donated millions to programs involving Brooke. He said he got the idea to link Brooke with UCLA while he and his wife were visiting the Texas hospital.
"We saw the burn patients, and they broke our hearts," Katz said. "We knew in our hearts that our docs could do great work."
Bringing the hospitals' two bureaucracies together hasn't always been easy, but officials on both sides say it has been worth it.
Three generals -- one Marine, two Army -- have come to UCLA recently to meet with the UCLA doctors and talk about a possible expansion of the program.
"There's exciting potential," said Amir Rubin, chief operating officer of the UCLA Hospital System.
With continuing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, there is also need, he said: "Unfortunately there are still people getting injured."
One of the UCLA patients is Marine Gunnery Sgt. Blaine Scott, 35, who was burned over 36% of his body when his vehicle struck a roadside bomb that killed three fellow Marines in Anbar province on Aug. 20, 2006.
Scott's arms and legs were burned. The bones in his left foot protruded sideways. His nose had been virtually sheared off, and his head, ears and face were scorched, leaving deep scars.
When he regained consciousness at Brooke, his wife, Lilly, was by his side. "There she was, nine months pregnant, pushing me in a wheelchair," Scott said.
