Is the PIP improving access to Surgical Care?

There is a shortage of trained and skilled national specialists in Pacific Island countries and territories. These gaps in surgical care result in preventable death and disability.

The Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS) is working with health partners in Pacific Island countries to strengthen surgical care through the Australian aid funded Pacific Islands Program (PIP).

Initiated in 1995, the program increases access to surgical care across 11 Pacific Island countries by providing education and training to Pacific surgeons, nurses, and other health workers and by supporting surgical teams to deliver surgeries locally.

Understanding the progress being made in strengthening the capacity of national health services and training institutions in the region will inform the implementation of the next PIP phase. RACS has commissioned Nossal Institute to undertake an End of Program Evaluation and provide recommendations for effective delivery of the program.

Katherine Gilbert will lead Nossal Institute’s team of evaluation experts. They will be connecting with program stakeholders to explore their perspectives on the role of the PIP in improving competencies of Pacific Island Countries’ health clinicians, the most effective model of capacity strengthening.

Findings and recommendations will be presented by the end of 2022.

Read the project details

More Information

Katherine Gilbert

katherine.gilbert@unimelb.edu.au