Safer C-section and anesthesia
The Challenge
5 billion lack access
According to the Lancet Commission on Global Surgery, five billion people – two thirds of the global population – lack access to safe and affordable anaesthesia and surgery.
Clinical conditions requiring surgical, obstetric, and anaesthesia services amount to 30% of the global disease burden; however, surgical care remains the most neglected area of global health with less than 1% of global health funding.
Collaboration for impact
Safer Anaesthesia from Education
Laerdal is a global Impact Partner of the World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists (WFSA). The Laerdal Foundation has supported the WFSA to introduce its Safer Anaesthesia from Education (SAFE) program in Tanzania, Bangladesh, Nepal, Zambia, India and Tanzania.
The goal of the SAFE courses is to equip anesthesia providers with the essential knowledge and skills to deliver safe care to their patients, even in low-resource settings. It also seeks to establish a sustainable training model that can be integrated into national health systems.
Two thirds of the global population lack access to safe and affordable anaesthesia and surgery. The World Federation of Society of Anaesthesiologists is committed to change this.
- Jannicke Mellin-Olsen, WFSA President
new simulation solutions
Improving quality of care
The phrase "too little too late, too much too soon" is used to describe the dual challenge related to c-sections. While C-sections are crucial for saving lives when necessary, there is an increasing global concern about the prevalence of unnecessary and unsafe procedures.
To address this, Laerdal Global Health developed a Birthing and Safe C-section simulator for healthcare providers to develop skills and competencies. Accompanied by a faculty guide created in collaboration with the Ethiopian Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, this simulator provides healthcare personnel, instructors, and students with the opportunity to practice hands-on procedures and realistic scenarios in a safe learning environment.
Utstein expert meetings
Improving reporting metrics
Supported by the Laerdal Foundation, WFSA has organized two expert meetings at Utstein Abbey in Norway resulting in a consensus on a refined set of metrics and reporting criteria to enhance patient safety in surgery, obstetrics, and anesthesia. In addition, data collection manuals and data dictionaries have been developed for healthcare personnel and policymakers to collect and exchange global surgical data.
Pilot programs were conducted in Ghana and South Africa to test these methods at the hospital level, with the aim of integrating them into national health systems improved patient safety.
The aim for these practices to be incorporated into broader health data systems for widespread implementation.
