As we approach two years of living with COVID-19, we offer gratitude to the army of first responders, doctors, nurses, and healthcare workers who continue to fight tirelessly through this pandemic, treating patients and saving lives at the risk of their own safety.
The Dawoodi Bohras of Virginia are blessed to have a number of very skilled and specialist doctors in their community who serve at the frontline of the COVID-19 battle.
Dr Arwa A Hussain MD FAAP (Pictured above) is a Pediatrician in Reston, Virginia and is affiliated with multiple hospitals in the region. She works predominantly with infants and young children in the ER and has encountered numerous serious cases as a result of COVID-19.
“Treating and nursing these infected babies and infants is heartbreaking and is especially challenging for me as a mother of 2 young children who are waiting for me at home…” says Dr Arwa who continues to put herself at risk looking after some of the most critical cases in units where she is most needed. Dr Arwa is the main lead advisory for COVIDE-19 Protocols for the Virginia Bohra community.

Dr Farida Izzi MD specializes in Internal Medicine at the George Washington University Hospital in Washington DC and has over 15 years’ experience following a Fellowship from John Hopkins University School of Medicine. Always suited up and ready to protect her patients from this serious virus, she states that:
“Being in the frontline of treatment is often very difficult given that this enemy is invisible, and the outcomes are not always positive. It has been a very scary time.”
Dr Farida works tirelessly to support her local area offering free consultations to the vulnerable members of the community especially those who are elderly, immobile or without medical insurance.

Dr Raiqa Munis MD serves at the Fairfax Innova and various facilities within the region as a specialist in Internal Medicine. She has been actively involved in substantial fund raising for COVID-19 resources and has been personally involved in setting up a free COVID-19 testing clinic in the region.
As one of the senior doctors at the forefront of this disease, she has witnessed the plight of patients, many of whom she has personally helped to overcome the lack of insurance and resources for treatment.
These healthcare heroes are among a team of Dawoodi Bohra doctors in Virginia who provide community wide outreach for COVID-19 and related health concerns. They remain the focal point in our fight against this deadly virus and their sense of service and commitment to patient care is unparalleled.
As we continue to adjust our lives around this invisible enemy, our doctors continue their incredible work to protect the community, often dealing with great financial and operational challenges. However, although the supplies of ventilators, face masks, face shields, gowns and gloves for our medical professionals may have been in limited supply during the early days of this pandemic, the doctors’ sense of service and their commitment to duty have remained in abundant supply as they battle on to uphold the dignity and honor of their noble profession.
In Virginia, as healthcare heroes continue to defeat the disease at great personal risk, the Dawoodi Bohra community of Virginia has been honored to show a small token of our gratitude and appreciation by providing lunches for the frontline medical professionals at various hospitals in Reston, Fairfax and Washington DC.
This pandemic has been a defining moment for everyone, and we bow our heads in humility and admiration as we offer this small note of “thanks” to honor and salute our Healthcare Heroes.