Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
About this Series: From its inception, the Disease Control Priorities series has focused attention on delivering efficacious health interventions that can result in dramatic reductions in mortality and disability at relatively modest cost. The approach has been multidisciplinary, and the recommendations have been evidence-based, scalable, and adaptable in multiple settings. Better and more equitable health care is the shared responsibility of governments and international agencies, public and private sectors, and societies and individuals, and all of these partners have been involved in the development of the series. Disease Control Priorities, third edition (DCP3) builds on the foundation and analyses of the first and second editions (DCP1 and DCP2) to further inform program design and resource allocation at the global and country levels by providing an up-to-date comprehensive review of the effectiveness of priority health interventions. In addition, DCP3 presents systematic and comparable economic evaluations of selected interventions, packages, delivery platforms, and policies based on newly developed economic methods. DCP3 presents its findings in nine individual volumes addressed to specific audiences. The volumes are structured around packages of conceptually related interventions, including those for maternal and child health, cardiovascular disease, infectious disease, and surgery. The volumes of DCP3 will constitute an essential resource for countries as they consider how best to improve health care, as well as for the global health policy community, technical specialists, and students. About this Volume: Essential Surgery demonstrates surgery s contribution to global public health. Data on the surgical burden of congenital anomalies, disease, disability, and trauma are presented, along with health and economic analyses of procedures, platforms, and packages to improve care in settings with severe budget limitations. Readers will gain comprehensive knowledge of the challenges and successes found in implementing surgical care strategies within low- and middle-income countries. Practitioners and researchers demonstrate that even small hospitals can deliver effective basic surgical services, and health care delivery structures already in place can be leveraged to provide affordable and quality surgical care."
Synopsis
"Essential Surgery is the first volume in the Disease Control Priorities, third edition (DCP3) series. DCP3 endeavors to inform program design and resource allocation at the global and country levels by providing a comprehensive review of the effectiveness, cost, and cost-effectiveness of priority health interventions. The volume presents data on the surgical burden of disease, disability, congenital anomalies, and trauma, along with health impact and economic analyses of procedures, platforms, and packages to improve care in settings with severe budget limitations. Essential Surgery identifies 44 surgical procedures that meet the following criteria: they address substantial needs, are cost effective, and are feasible to implement in low- and middle-income countries. If made universally available, the provision of these 44 procedures would avert 1.5 million deaths a year and rank among the most cost effective of all health interventions. Existing health care delivery structures can be leveraged to provide affordable and quality care, with first-level hospitals capable of delivering the majority of procedures, while addressing substantial disparities in safety. Existing infrastructure can also expand access to surgery by implementing measures such as task sharing, which has been shown to be safe and effective while countries build workforce capacity. Nearly ten years after the second iteration of Disease Control Priorities was released, increased attention to the importance of health systems in providing access to quality care is once again reshaping the global health landscape. Low- and middle-income countries are continuing to set priorities for funding and are making decisions across an increasingly complex set of policy and intervention choices with a greater appreciation for the value of program and economic evaluations. By reviewing the large burden of surgical disorders, the cost-effectiveness of surgical procedures, and the strong public demand for surgical services, Essential Surgery makes a compelling case for improving global access to surgical care."