RECAP: World Health Assembly Side Event – Data to Action: How Metrics and Standards Are Improving Patient Safety
Even in the rain, it was a packed house for our 78th World Health Assembly side event co-hosted with WFSA (World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists) – Data to Action – How Metrics and Standards Are Improving Patient Safety. The strong turnout underscored the momentum to strengthen metrics, standards, and the integration of surgery, anesthesia, emergency and critical care in efforts to improve patient safety worldwide.
We’re grateful to all our speakers who brought their expertise and insights:
🔹 Dr. Carolina Haylock-Loor (WFSA President-Elect; CHESA Advisory Board) opened the session with powerful framing on the need for standards and metrics to improve essential emergency, critical, and operative care.
🔹 Dr. John Fogarty (WHO) shared how the UHC Service Package Delivery & Implementation Tool supports countries in defining and delivering essential health services.
🔹 Dr. John Rose (CHESA Associate Director of Advocacy & Policy) introduced the Utstein Surgical Metrics and approaches to tracking surgical outcomes and systems performance.
🔹 Dr. Chris Dodgion (The G4 Alliance) presented on the Operative Encounter Registry and its potential to improve surgical, obstetric, trauma, and anesthesia care through better data use in LMICs.
🔹 Dr. Adrian W Gelb (CHESA Director of Advocacy & Policy; Past President of WFSA) discussed the Anaesthesia Facility Assessment Tool (AFAT) is strengthening anesthesia safety and capacity. https://wfsahq.org/resources/afat/
🔹 Dr. Karima Khalid (WFSA/Essential Emergency and Critical Care Network) highlighted findings from the African Critical Illness Outcomes Study and how they inform improvements in critical care in resource-limited settings.
Special thanks to Drs. Gelb and Rose for representing CHESA on the panel and spotlighting the contributions of our long-standing partners in Mozambique and Uganda, CHESA faculty including Associate Director Dr. Michael Lipnick and CHESA Fellows Drs. Ronald Bisegerwa and Greta Davis.
The session highlighted the vital role of surgery, anesthesia, and robust data systems in shaping safer, more integrated and resilient health systems.
Pictured below:
- Top left: Our panel of speakers and moderator Dr. Haylock-Loor in front of a packed room at the Press Club in Geneva
- Bottom left: Dr. Gelb presents on the AFAT facility assessment tool in strengthening anesthesia safety in resource-variable settings
- Photo on right: Dr. Rose presents on Utstein surgical metrics and strengthening surgical data systems in Mozambique.
