BY: MOHAMED SAHR
The Government of Sierra Leone, through the Ministry of Health, has hosted the 64th Annual General Meeting and Scientific Conference of the West Africa College of Surgeons (WACS) at the Freetown International Conference Centre, Aberdeen. The conference, held on Monday, March 4th, 2024, revolved around the theme “Access to Safe and Affordable Surgical and Anaesthesia Care in West Africa.”
Over six hundred surgeons participated in the week-long conference, focusing on knowledge sharing, collaboration, and the training of young surgeons across the West Africa region. The conference also prioritized innovation and research in the surgical field.
During the opening ceremony, Dr. Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh, Vice President of the Republic of Sierra Leone, emphasized the critical role surgery plays in healthcare delivery in West Africa. He highlighted the challenges faced by surgical frontline workers in the region, particularly in Sierra Leone, and stressed the importance of access to surgical and anaesthetic care in achieving universal health coverage and boosting economic productivity.
Dr. Jalloh recognized health financing as a significant obstacle to achieving universal health coverage and urged WACS to make surgery widely available through public-private partnerships, task-sharing, and emerging approaches. He also mentioned the progress made by Sierra Leone in expanding quality surgical care, especially in rural communities, resulting in a significant reduction in maternal mortality rates.
Dr. Austin Demby, Minister of Health, echoed the country’s commitment to improving healthcare services for all Sierra Leoneans and highlighted the challenges faced in providing surgical and anaesthesia services, including limited resources and infrastructure. He emphasized the importance of technological improvements and the exchange of ideas in addressing these challenges.
Professor Ezeome Emmanuel, President of the West Africa College of Surgeons, emphasized the significance of the conference in strengthening relationships among sister institutions and advancing surgical practices in West Africa. He also mentioned WACS’s commitment to training and retaining skilled surgical graduates, particularly female surgeons, in the region.
Prior to the conference, a pre-conference surgical outreach was conducted in under-served areas of Sierra Leone, providing free surgeries to local residents. This outreach initiative, part of WACS’s corporate social responsibility, resulted in 218 surgeries being performed with no complications.
During the conference’s opening day, WACS conferred an honorary degree upon Dr. Henri Ronald Ford, a Haitian-American pediatric surgeon, for his outstanding contributions to the institution through training, mentorship, and support.
