Global surgery: A new agenda item for surgical training and professional partnership

Billions of people in resource-poor countries continue to sustain significant mortality and disability from otherwise treatable surgical conditions due to inequitable access to surgical and anaesthesia care. ‘Global surgery’ aims to improve health and health equity in response by achieving ‘universal access to safe, affordable surgical and anaesthesia care’ for all people affected by surgical conditions, with a particular focus on underserved and disadvantaged populations. It embraces a wide range of international platforms and actors that strive to facilitate knowledge transfer and capacity building. The present study describes the global surgical landscape, based on findings from the Lancet Commission on Global Surgery, and discusses potential avenues for contributions by professional bodies and academic institutions. Previously considered too expensive or complicated for public health considerations, surgery is now regarded as an indivisible and integral component of global health. Global surgery should be regarded as an important agenda item by professional bodies willing and ready to participate in this momentous public health intervention.