The Future of Battlefield Surgery by John Swinnen.
The traditional battlefield involved soldiers on both sides, fighting against each other.
Today, the battlefield is quite different and this has impacted how we practice surgery. Why?
First, the world is full, more than half of humanity lives in cities. Hospitals in developing countries are exhausted and under-resourced.
Furthermore, the threats we face today are global – global warming, pollution, air pollution, terrorism and water supply. The climate crisis is a health crisis.
Moreover, modern-day weapons are so powerful that conventional warfare is almost obsolete – atomic weapons, cyber warfare.. the list goes on. These new weapons of war have devastating consequences.
Finally, diagnosis and surgical intervention relies on extensive technology and minimal invasiveness. This is unsuitable to battlefield situations and makes it incredibly challenging to provide care.
MSF goes where no one else will go, but doing this kind of good is not getting any easier.
Tune in to an incredible talk by John Swinnen on the Future of Battlefield Surgery.
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Dr John Swinnen
Dr John Swinnen is an Australian-based health professional.
John is trained as a General Surgeon, Vascular Surgeon
