Along with a team of professionals from Operation Smile and Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles, Assistant Professor Shubha Kumar recently traveled to Vietnam to assist in health policy development.
At the 68th World Health Assembly, representatives of Member States of the United Nations unanimously approved a resolution on strengthening emergency and essential surgical care and anesthesia as a component of universal health coverage. The primary purpose of this trip was to assist the Department of Medical Administration within the Ministry of Health of Vietnam in developing and adapting guidelines to increase access to safe, well-timed and effective surgery within the country. Activities included discussions with key stakeholders, analysis of recent data gathered on the state of surgery within Vietnam, and contextualization and adaptation of the World Health Organization guidelines on safe surgery for the country context.
