Summary Report of 3rd Annual P2P Global Diaspora Forum

SUMMARY OF 3RD GLOBAL ETHIOPIAN DIASPORA CONFERENCE (2011) It is with great satisfaction that P2P announces the successful conclusion of the 3rd Global Ethiopian Diaspora Conference on Health Care and Medical Education, which was conducted at the Sheraton National Hotel, in Arlington, VA on Saturday, September 24th, 2011. The 3rd Global Conference followed the 1st and 2nd Global Conferences, which were conducted in 2009 and 2010. Over 200 Health Care Professional from all corners of USA attended the conference.

While most attendees were Medical Professional of Ethiopian origin, there were several foreigners (mainly from the US) who have had working experience in Ethiopia and some others who plan to be involved with Ethiopia in the future.

Participants who came from Ethiopia to participate in the conference include His Excellency Dr. Tedros Adhanom, Minister of Health of Ethiopia; Dr. Atalay Alem, Executive Director of the College of Health Sciences at AAU; Dr. Mesfin Araya, Provost of the St. Paul Millennium Medical School in Addis Ababa; Dr. Asfaw Atnafu, Chairman of the Department of Radiology at AAU Medical Faculty; Dr. Aklilu Azaj, Chairman of the Department of Emergency Medicine at AAU Medical Faculty and Dr. Yazezew Kebede, Chairman of Department of Medicine at Mekelle University Medical School. The opening ceremony was also attended by His Excellency Ato Girma Birru, Ambassador of Ethiopia to the USA. The World Bank was represented by Dr. Kofi Anani from the African Diaspora Program.

The main theme of the conference was the partnership between World Bank, The Ethiopian Diaspora and Ethiopian Health Care Institutions to support the New Medical Education Initiative (NMEI) in Ethiopia which is designed to increase the number of Medical Schools in the country from the current 12 to about 25 which will be realized soon. In addition to the individual presentations, a very lively discussion and debate was conducted in regard to how to realize this as well as how to improve the quality of education. Other areas of discussion in the conference included the state of Postgraduate Medical Education in Ethiopia, status of Emergency Medical Services in Ethiopia , ENT services and education, HIV education modules, and Palliative Care Services. At the end of the conference, a lively presentation and discussion was conducted focusing on the role of Public-Private Partnership as well as Private Initiatives to establish a High Standard, International Grade Hospital in Ethiopia.

During the working lunch session, 2 presentations were made focusing on the importance of incorporating Ethiopian Medical History to Medical School curriculum in Ethiopia, an area which P2P has been working hard to realize for more than 10 years. It was reported that Mekelle University Medical School is actively working on developing the appropriate curriculum and materials to be the pioneer medical school in this regard. They were congratulated on their enthusiasm and willingness to take action to incorporate such important topic into their medical education curriculum. Understanding the past is important for today and the future. Medicine without its history is like a tree without its roots.

During the conference, 3 individuals, selected by P2P were given special awards. Dr. Pawlos Quanna, the Founder and Former Chairman of Ophthalmology at AAU was given the “Life Time Achievement Award” for his lifelong contribution towards the development of Ophthalmology in Ethiopia. Dr. Aklilu Azaj, Chairman of Emergency Medicine at AAU was given the “Rising Star Award” for his role in establishing the first Emergency Medicine Service in the country. The “Service Award” was given to the legendary “Ababa Tesfaye” who was the former anchor of Children’s TV program. During lunch break, there were cultural events led by the Ethiopian cultural icon, Alemtsehay Wodajo and her group. The cultural activities included poems as well as brief theatrical acts. All in all the conference was a huge success in terms of attendance, the topics and issues covered, the participation of the audience as well as bringing people together.

It was the observation of many that this annual event is turning out to be a major venue for bringing the Ethiopian Diaspora Health Care Professionals together to discuss and debate issues relevant to Health Care and Medical Education in Ethiopia. This event will also serve as means of connecting the Diaspora with Ethiopian Health Care Institutions so that transfer of knowledge, technology, investment, and know how can happen. P2P is looking forward to the 4th Global Conference which will take place in 2012, which we hope will be bigger and more successful than all the previous ones. As part of its future plans, P2P is planning to explore with other Ethiopian Diaspora Organizations (which focus on Health Care Professionals) the idea of “Ethiopian Diaspora Health Care Weekend” where by the P2P Global Conference will be conducted and on the same weekend several other satellite meeting can be conducted by the various organizations.