Cambridge researchers lead global call for recognition of traumatic brain injury at World Health Assembly
Medwards Alumna Dr Laura Hobbs and Bye-fellow Dr Brandon G. Smith advance landmark policy action
Members of the NIHR Global Health Research Group of Acquired Brain and Spine Injury, University of Cambridge
Medwards Alumna Dr Laura Hobbs, Bye-fellow Dr. Brandon G. Smith and Principal Investigator Dr. Tom Bashford from the Department of Engineering teamed up with Prof Peter Hutchinson and Ms Sara Venturini from the Department of Clinical Neurosciences as part of the Cambridge team representing the Global Coalition for Traumatic Brain Injury at the 79th World Health Assembly in Geneva that took place on 16 and 17 May.
The team was funded by the NIHR Global Health Research Group on Acquire Brain and Spine Injury, and ran a side event to promote the recognition of traumatic brain injury as a notifiable and chronic condition. Building on last year’s efforts at the 78th World Health Assembly, they plan to propose a resolution at the 80th next year.
Laura Hobbs, Murray Edwards alumna and Consultant in Anaesthesia and Perioperative Care, East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust and Dr. Brandon G. Smith, Murray Edwards Bye-fellow in Engineering & Postdoctoral Research Associate in Healthcare Innovation, Department of Engineering commented:
"Traumatic brain injury (TBI) affects 69 million people every year and has been invisible in global health policy for far too long. This weekend felt like a real change. Pakistan submitted a formal draft resolution to the 79th World Health Assembly to recognise TBI as a notifiable and chronic condition - this is a landmark moment, with ministerial co-sponsors from Europe, the Americas, Africa and across Asia all behind it.
TBI doesn't stop at the hospital door. It follows people into their schools, workplaces, homes, and communities. This is a public responsibility that cuts across every sector of society. What I'm proudest of is that this came from a truly united team with over 130 organisations and 9 member states coalescing behind a single cause - among them leading the event from the NIHR Global Health Research Group on Acquired Brain and Spine Injury, was Dr. Laura Hobbs, Dr. Brandon G. Smith, Dr. Tom Bashford and Prof. Peter Hutchinson and Ms. Sara Venturini from the Departments of Engineering and Clinical Neurosciences in Cambridge respectively, working side by side with Prof. Tariq Khan and Dr. Almas Khattak from Peshawar, Pakistan, all under the Global Coalition for Traumatic Brain Injury. We leave Geneva with real political will behind us. The work continues, and we are proud to be part of it."
Ministerial delegations (front, seated) and members of the Global Coalition for TBI at the Recognizing TBI as a notifiable and chronic disease side event
The Coalition last week published a viewpoint in Lancet Global Health, which summarises its efforts on the global scale of TBI and the burden it causes patients, their families and communities.
There is much more work to do but fundamentally this is being realised through a coordinated, sustained multidisciplinary effort and the team is thrilled to be representing Cambridge in this endeavour.
Members of the Global Coalition for TBI and The G4 Alliance outside the Palais des Nations at the Walk the Talk event
Dr Laura Hobbs and Dr Brandon G. Smith with Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (Director General, World Health Organization) at the Walk the Talk event