Watch recording: GSF participates in World Health Summit session on "Essential Surgical and Trauma Care"
On 26 October 2020, representatives of the Global Surgery Foundation Leadership Team participated in a session of the World Health Summit 2020 entitled “PD 19 - Essential Surgical and Trauma Care".
Hosts
AO Alliance Foundation
Program in Global Surgery and Social Change of the Harvard Medical School
Chairs
Prof. Dr. John G. Meara
Harvard Medical School | Professor of Surgery | United States of America
Dr. Geoffrey Ibbotson
Global Surgery Foundation | Executive Lead | Switzerland
Speakers
Dr. Jim Harrison
AO Alliance Foundation | African Regional Director | Switzerland
Prof. Dr. Ali Jafarian
Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS) | Former Chancellor | Iran
Dr. Teri Reynolds
World Health Organization (WHO) | Clinical Services and Systems - Integrated Health Services | Unit Head
Dr. Lubna Samad
Indus Health Network | Director of Center for Essential Surgical and Acute Care | Pakistan
H.E. Dr. Ifereimi Waqainabete
Fijian Government | Minister for Health and Medical Services | Republic of Fiji
You can watch the recording above. Below you will find the description for the session by the World Health Summit:
Although increasingly recognized as an indivisible, indispensable part of Universal Health Coverage, limited progress has been made in recent years to advance surgical care around the world. Surgical conditions make up over five times the mortality of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria combined, yet funding for surgical care remains inequitably small in terms of international funding. This despite the fact that today, over five billion people remain without access to safe surgical care.
The result: over 17 million preventable deaths annually and 30% of the global burden of disease is attributable to surgical conditions. Furthermore, trauma and injury accounts for 5.8 million deaths and around 50 million permanently disabled persons per year. 90% of this mortality and morbidity occurs in LMICs. To address this, we need integrated and holistic approaches to build up health systems that includes increased emphasis on surgical delivery, an emphasis that is currently lacking.
We must recognize that the old-fashioned myth that access to emergency and essential surgical care is a luxury item has been debunked. On the contrary, emergency and essential surgical interventions are cost-effective and absolutely essential for Universal Health Coverage.