Committee on Global Engagement International Subcommittee

More than 5 billion people lack access to primary and emergency surgical care in low- and middle-income countries. ACS H.O.P.E. is currently engaged in programmatic activities in three Eastern African countries. This outreach is focused on training, capacity-building of the local teaching hospitals, patient care, and research infrastructure development. These collaborative sites serve as mutually beneficial global learning spaces where surgeons from both the US and the African cities can learn from and teach each other. The International Subcommittee supports these collaboratives in Hawassa, Ethiopia, Lusaka, Zambia, and Kigali, Rwanda. This subcommittee also works with the College of Surgeons of East, Central, and Southern Africa (COSECSA) to coordinate the annual ACS-COSECSA Women Scholars Award. 

This subcommittee aims to:

• Enhance global diversity and representation in the surgical field by expanding the number of women surgeons worldwide. 

• Foster sustainable growth and self-sufficiency in ACS Surgical Hubs through enhanced collaboration and communication tailored to local partners' needs. 

• Establish an ACS Clinical Fellowship program to collaborate with established surgical hubs in the COSECSA region and promote the active participation of ACS members in global surgery initiatives. 

Activities

This subcommittee is working on new initiatives to increase communication and knowledge-sharing across the sites and develop virtual ACS programs accessible to all the collaboratives simultaneously.  

Committee on Global Engagement International Subcommittee Roster

Contact

If you have questions or comments, contact the Committee Staff Liaison, Miranda Melone, at mmelone@facs.org.