CGH Stories

CGH Stories2023-11-24T13:54:13-05:00

CGH Spring 2022 Newsletter

Click here to read the Center for Global Health Spring 2022 Newsletter

1310, 2023

Earthquake in Afghanistan

October 13th, 2023|Categories: Global Disaster Response, Global Health|

On October 7th, a 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck western Afghanistan roughly 40 kilometers west of Herat City. The area experienced several aftershocks and another 6.3 magnitude quake just days later on October 11th. The quakes have caused massive destruction across several districts with over 12,000 people affected, a number that is expected to rise. The epicenter of the quake, Zindajan district, is the worst affected with nearly 1,300 deaths, [...]

909, 2023

Earthquake in Morocco

September 9th, 2023|Categories: Global Disaster Response, Global Health|

September 12, 2023 - On September 8, 2023, a powerful 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck Morocco in the High Atlas mountains, about 71km (44 miles) southwest of Marrakesh. A city of roughly 840,000 people, Marrakesh and the surrounding area has been most impacted, with many homes and businesses collapsed and nearly 3,000 people killed at the latest count. The death toll is likely to increase as the full extent of [...]

2203, 2023

MGH’s Center for Global Health stands in solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community in Uganda

March 22nd, 2023|Categories: Global Health|

MGH Global Health’s core values drive us to advocate for better health outcomes for all, no matter where they live or how they identify. That is why we are in firm opposition to the Anti-Homosexuality Bill recently introduced in Uganda’s Parliament. The legislation would not only diminish Uganda’s commitment to protecting the right to health of its people, but it would violate multiple fundamental rights including freedom of expression, [...]

602, 2023

Earthquake in Turkey and Syria

February 6th, 2023|Categories: Global Disaster Response, Global Health|

At 4:17 AM local time on February 6, 2023, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake with a depth of 24 km struck the Pazarcik District of Kahramanmaraş Province in south-central Turkey, and significant aftershocks were felt throughout the region, including another large, 7.5 magnitude quake in southeastern Turkey just 11 minutes later. In the 10 days since the earthquake, Turkish authorities report over 35,000 fatalities, and the death toll in Syria [...]

3105, 2022

Performing Facial Reconstructive Surgery in Sub-Saharan Africa: An Interview with David Shaye, MD, MPH, FACS

May 31st, 2022|Categories: Global Health|

Traumatic injuries account for more than five million annual deaths, roughly as many as HIV, malaria, and tuberculosis combined. Ninety percent of these trauma-related deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries that often lack sufficient surgical staff or surgical tools to treat these injuries. For those that require complex facial reconstruction, the disparity in care can be even greater. David Shaye, MD, MPH, FACS In Boston, David [...]

2504, 2022

A New Era in Global Psychiatric Care

April 25th, 2022|Categories: Global Health|

When the World Health Organization labeled COVID-19 a pandemic in March 2020, researchers within the mental health community quickly began sound the alarm about a concurring silent pandemic: mental health illness. In Boston, Greg Fricchione, MD, and Guiseppe “Bepi” Raviola, MD, leaders of the MGH Chester M. Pierce Division of Global Psychiatry, have actively worked to position the division in response to the ensuing mental health crisis. Greg [...]

2504, 2022

In Memory of Paul Edward Farmer, MD, PhD

April 25th, 2022|Categories: Global Health|

Paul Edward Farmer, MD, PhD, passed away at the age of 62 in Butaro, Rwanda on February 21, 2022. He was the co-founder and chief strategist of Partners In Health, chair of the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School, chief of the Division of Global Health Equity at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and Kolokotrones University Professor at Harvard. Within the MGH Center for Global [...]

2504, 2022

Researching Antimicrobial Resistance in Bangladesh

April 25th, 2022|Categories: Global Health|

In January 2022, a published Lancet study found that in 2019, nearly 5 million deaths were due to antimicrobial resistant infections. Klebsiella pneumoniae is one bacterium that can develop antimicrobial resistance and as a result has become an increasing global threat. The bacteria, which is normally harmless in the gut, can cause a series of life-threatening illnesses including pneumonia, sepsis, meningitis, and wound or surgical site infections when introduced [...]

2504, 2022

CNN Africa Recognizes MobiCare Creator Nuriat Nambogo, MMS, DPPM, BDS

April 25th, 2022|Categories: Global Health|

Nuriat Nambogo, MMS, DPPM, BDS, a Research and Grants Manager at the Consortium for Affordable Medical Technologies (CAMTech) Uganda was recognized by CNN Africa for her role in developing MobiCare, the company responsible for the MobiCare app. Nuriat Nambogo, MMS, DPPM, BDS Mobicare allows patients to search for and directly interact with local healthcare providers to schedule appointments and ask medical questions. Nambogo developed the app in [...]

2503, 2022

Meet MGH Global Health:
Rhina Mushagara

March 25th, 2022|Categories: Meet MGH Global Health|

The “Meet MGH Global Health Series” spotlights the passionate, diverse members of our global health team at home and abroad who believe everyone, everywhere has a right to good health. Meet MGH Global Health: Rhina Mushagara, MSc.IS Today we introduce Rhina Mushagara, MSc.IS! Rhina is a Relations and Communications Manager for the Global Health Collaborative, Uganda; a partnership between the MGH Center for Global Health, Mbarara University of Science [...]

2103, 2022

Building a Network of Global Gastorenterologists: An Interview with Akwi Asombang, MD, MPH

March 21st, 2022|Categories: Uncategorized|

In 2021, Akwi Asombang, MD, MPH, joined the MGH Division of Gastroenterology, a branch of medicine focused on diseases of the digestive system, as a member of the Interventional Endoscopy team and Director of Global Health Programs. As an interventional gastroenterologist, Dr. Asombang performs advanced nonsurgical procedures that are vital to the identification and treatment of digestive disorders. Recognizing the gastroenterology resources and training are not available everywhere, Dr. [...]

1403, 2022

Crisis in Ukraine: Mass General Responds

March 14th, 2022|Categories: Global Disaster Response, Global Health|

Since Feb. 24, the crisis in Ukraine has affected more than 18 million people across that country, internally displacing as many as 7 million, with more than 12 million individuals in need of urgent humanitarian care and 2 million Ukrainians fleeing to seek refuge in neighboring countries. Lindsey Martin, NP The Center for Global Health (CGH) at Massachusetts General Hospital is committed to responding to the needs [...]

103, 2022

In Support of Ukraine

March 1st, 2022|Categories: Global Disaster Response, Global Health|

Last Updated March 30, 2022 NEW: On March 27, 2022, the Global Disaster Response and Humanitarian Action program deployed a team to Eastern Europe as part of their continued response to the crisis in Ukraine and the current needs of displaced people around the globe. The team is deployed in partnership with Medical Teams International to provide medical support for refugee transit centers and training in point of care [...]

2101, 2022

Meet MGH Global Health:
Kerry Phelan

January 21st, 2022|Categories: Meet MGH Global Health|

The “Meet MGH Global Health Series” spotlights the passionate, diverse members of our global health team at home and abroad who believe everyone, everywhere has a right to good health. Meet MGH Global Health: Kerry Phelan, MBA Kerry Phelan, MBA Today we introduce Kerry Phelan, MBA! Kerry is a Project Manager at CGH. She has been at the Center for Global Health for four years and is [...]

1201, 2022

2021 Global Health Service Awards Winners Announced

January 12th, 2022|Categories: Global Health|

We are pleased to announce the recipients of the 2021 MGH Global Health Service Awards. The Global Health Service Awards are an annual tradition of the Center for Global Health and serve to recognize individuals who are committed to advancing healthcare equity. The awards were established with three goals in mind: to encourage innovation, dedication, and commitment in the field of Global Health; recognize individuals who inspire, advance, and [...]

1111, 2021

Meet MGH Global Health:
Kristen Giambusso

November 11th, 2021|Categories: Meet MGH Global Health|

The “Meet MGH Global Health Series” spotlights the passionate, diverse members of our global health team at home and abroad who believe everyone, everywhere has a right to good health. Meet MGH Global Health: Kristen Giambusso Kristen Giambusso, MPH Today we introduce Kristen Giambusso, MPH! Giambusso is the Deputy Director of Global Disaster Response and Humanitarian Action (GDRHA). She is a Boston University School of Public Health [...]

111, 2021

Building a Team of Technicians in Haiti

November 1st, 2021|Categories: Global Health, Uncategorized|

One of the unrecognized backbones of medicine is machine technology. Oxygen concentrators, anesthesia machines, incubators, ventilators, and so many more machines are integral to modern medical care. According to the World Health Organization, “Without medical devices, common medical procedures – from bandaging a sprained ankle, to diagnosing HIV/AIDS, implanting an artificial hip or any surgical intervention – would not be possible.” What happens when these lifesaving machines break and [...]

2810, 2021

Meet MGH Global Health:
Manami Uechi

October 28th, 2021|Categories: Meet MGH Global Health|

The “Meet MGH Global Health Series” spotlights the passionate, diverse members of our global health team at home and abroad who believe everyone, everywhere has a right to good health. Meet MGH Global Health: Manami Uechi Manami Uechi, MD, MMSc Today we introduce Manami Uechi, MD, MMSc! Uechi is the Program Coordinator for the MGH Asylum Clinic at the Center for Global Health and is a primary [...]

810, 2021

Meet MGH Global Health:
Edward Alexander

October 8th, 2021|Categories: Meet MGH Global Health|

The “Meet MGH Global Health Series” spotlights the passionate, diverse members of our global health team at home and abroad who believe everyone, everywhere has a right to good health. Meet MGH Global Health: Edward Alexander Edward Alexander, MPH Today we introduce Edward Alexander, MPH! Alexander is the Communication Specialist at CGH. He has been at the Center for Global Health for just under a year and [...]

2509, 2021

Condemning Inhuman Treatment of Migrants

September 25th, 2021|Categories: Global Health|

On August 14, 2021 a magnitude 7.2 earthquake—causing 2,207 deaths, another 12,268 injuries, and the destruction of 129,929 homes—struck Haiti and was soon followed by Tropical Storm Grace which directly interfered with earthquake response efforts. These natural disasters came amid years of political instability, marked by the assasination of President Jovenel Moïse on July 7 of this year.These interlocking crises placed a spotlight on migration from Haiti which has [...]

2409, 2021

Supporting Palliative Care Across the Globe

September 24th, 2021|Categories: Global Health|

“Most of the history of medicine was palliative care,” according to Mark Stoltenberg, MD, MA, a faculty member of the Division of Palliative Care and Geriatrics at MGH. Before the dawn of modern medicine, much of healthcare was not actually curative. “We couldn't fix, or cure or anything,” Stoltenberg continues. “We didn't have safe surgery. We didn't have antibiotics.” Mark Stoltenberg, MD, MA, (left), and Bethany Rose Daubman, [...]

2409, 2021

The Toll of COVID-19 on Health Workers

September 24th, 2021|Categories: Global Health|

Over the last year, at least 17,000 health workers have died from COVID-19. A July 2020 investigation found that workers in 63 countries faced shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) even as they treated COVID-19 patients. These shortages combined with the inequitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines—low-income countries have vaccinated 1.9% of their populations—means that health workers in low-income countries face greater risk of infection and death than those in [...]

2409, 2021

Building Nursing Capacity through Relationships

September 24th, 2021|Categories: Global Health, Global Health Nursing|

Mary Sebert, RN, MPH became a nurse 36 years ago. In this time, she has served in a variety of roles, including clinically in hospitals and disaster settings, as a nursing coordinator, as a nursing educator in Uganda, and, currently, as the Director of the MGH Global Nursing Program. Pressed on why she chose the profession, Sebert recalls her grandmother’s premonition. “I think my grandmother led me to nursing,” [...]

2409, 2021

Global Health Grand Rounds Relaunch Alongside Brigham and Women’s Hospital

September 24th, 2021|Categories: Global Health|

The MGH Center for Global Health and Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) Division of Global Health Equity have joined together to create a joint Global Health Grand rounds series. This new series combines both department’s former grand rounds series and hopes to bring together a wider community, connecting experts and partners from both institutions. Global Health Grand Rounds brings together a multidisciplinary community of global health practitioners dedicated to [...]

2409, 2021

COVID-19 Treatment Center Opens in Mbarara

September 24th, 2021|Categories: GHC, Global Health|

On July 1, 2021, Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital (MRRH) opened a COVID-19 Treatment Center designed to expand the hospital’s capacity to care for patients with COVID-19. Construction began on April 1, 2020 and today, has added 60 full isolation beds to the hospital’s capacity. Global Health Collaborative (GHC) Program Director Stephen Asiimwe, MBChB, MS, DrPH, and Program Manager Annet Kembabazi, steered the collaboration that created the center. The treatment [...]

2409, 2021

Responding in Haiti

September 24th, 2021|Categories: Global Disaster Response, Global Health|

A 7.2 magnitude earthquake was recorded in Haiti on August 14, 2021. The USGS estimates that the shaking zone affected more than 2.1 million people. The earthquake caused at least 2,207 deaths, 12,268 injuries, and 129,929 houses damaged or destroyed. Many local hospitals were very quickly overwhelmed.The earthquake preceded Tropical Storm Grace which generated flooding, heavy rains, and strong winds on August 16 and 17. Recent crises such as the [...]

1609, 2021

Meet MGH Global Health: Annet Kembabazi, MSC

September 16th, 2021|Categories: Meet MGH Global Health|

The “Meet MGH Global Health Series” spotlights the passionate, diverse members of our global health team at home and abroad who believe everyone, everywhere has a right to good health. Meet MGH Global Health: Annet Kembabazi, MSC. Annet Kembabazi, MSC Today we introduce Annet Kembabazi, MSC! Kembabazi is the senior program manager of the Mass General Hospital-Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST) Global Health Collaborative (GHC). [...]

109, 2021

Meet MGH Global Health: Stephen Asiimwe MBChB, MS, DrPH

September 1st, 2021|Categories: Meet MGH Global Health|

The “Meet MGH Global Health Series” spotlights the passionate, diverse members of our global health team at home and abroad who believe everyone, everywhere has a right to good health. Meet MGH Global Health: Stephen Asiimwe MBChB, MS, DrPH. Dr. Stephen Asiimwe Dr. Asiimwe is the Program Director of the Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST) Global Health Collaborative (GHC), Uganda, an institutional partnership between MUST and [...]

1408, 2021

Earthquake in Haiti

August 14th, 2021|Categories: Global Disaster Response, Global Health|

Last Updated August 25, 2021 On August 14, 2021, a 7.2-magnitude earthquake was recorded in Haiti. The USGS estimates that the shaking zone affected more than 2.1 million people. As of August 20, reports indicate 2,207 earthquake-related deaths, 12,268 injuries, and 129,929 houses damaged or destroyed. Many local hospitals are also overwhelmed. We at the MGH Center for Global Health (CGH) extend our thoughts and attention to the people [...]

1407, 2021

Holyoke COVID-19 Community Antibody Study Takeaways: An Interview with Ryan Paxton, MPH

July 14th, 2021|Categories: COVID-19, Global Health, Global Health Research|

When COVID-19 forced public health organizations to act, the universal strategy included social distancing, quarantine measures, comprehensive contact tracing and testing, mask wearing, and other strategies in order to prevent the virus from spreading. Enacting this strategy taxed public health infrastructure across the globe. In many communities in the United States, this constellation of responses required local Boards of Health to significantly alter their operations. In Holyoke—a city in [...]

707, 2021

Mass General dispatches team to support COVID-19 response in Uganda

July 7th, 2021|Categories: COVID-19, GDR COVID-19, Global Disaster Response|

The Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Center for Global Health (CGH) is deploying a team on Thursday, June 24 to Mbarara, Uganda in collaboration with Build Health International to support efforts to treat patients with COVID-19 infections. "This is not just about access to resources, it is about access to vaccines. There is a connection between current COVID-19 surges and lack of vaccine access and equity." While many areas across [...]

707, 2021

Answering the Call in India and Beyond

July 7th, 2021|Categories: COVID-19, GDR COVID-19, Global Disaster Response|

As we in Boston and across the United States gradually emerge from the isolation of COVID-19, we can begin to breathe a cautious sigh of relief. This is not the case for everyone around the globe. Health systems in India, Brazil and other countries in Southeast Asia are currently overwhelmed by COVID-19 cases. On May 6, India — the world’s second most populous country, with 1.4 billion citizens — [...]

2106, 2021

A Holistic Vision for the Asylum Clinic

June 21st, 2021|Categories: Uncategorized|

This story is part of our Summer 2021 Newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. “AS PHYSICIANS OUR JOB is to think holistically about health,” says Altaf Saadi, MD, MSc, Co-Director of the MGH Asylum Clinic. This comprehensive view orients the future of the Asylum Clinic—which conducts forensic medical examinations for individuals seeking asylum. Since launching in October 2017, the Asylum Clinic has undergone tremendous growth; increasing its [...]

2106, 2021

Ending the COVID-19 Pandemic Together

June 21st, 2021|Categories: Uncategorized|

This story is part of our Summer 2021 Newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. ON DECEMBER 8, 2020, Margaret Keenan, a 91-year-old woman, received the first approved Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine dose in the world. Pfizer and BioNTech collaborated to produce the vaccine in less than a year. Moving through clinical trials and producing an effective vaccine in such a short period of time is one of this [...]

2106, 2021

Building a Global Oncology Community

June 21st, 2021|Categories: Uncategorized|

This story is part of our Summer 2021 Newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. OVER THE PAST several decades, cancer technology has grown immensely. Oncology research has led to new treatments and therapies. Patient outcomes have improved for a variety of cancers. All of this growth saves lives. “There is tremendous growth and scientific progress happening,” echoes MGH oncologist Aparna Parikh, MD, MPH. “Yet, where the preponderance [...]

2106, 2021

Global Disaster Response Returns to Matamoros, Mexico and Supports India’s COVID-19 Response

June 21st, 2021|Categories: COVID-19, GDR COVID-19, Uncategorized|

This story is part of our Summer 2021 Newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. MATAMOROS, MEXICO is a city located on the Mexico-United States border and the receiving site for many individuals seeking asylum who have been sent back from the United States while they await their immigration hearings. Although the Biden administration altered Trump-era immigration and asylum policies to allow more asylum seekers into the United [...]

2106, 2021

CGH-Sponsored Master of Nursing Students Graduate from Mbarara University of Science and Technology

June 21st, 2021|Categories: Uncategorized|

This story is part of our Summer 2021 Newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. ON APRIL 24, 2021, Mbarara University of Science and Technology held a virtual graduation ceremony in which eight, MGH Center for Global Health sponsored, Master of Nursing Critical Care students graduated. CGH sponsored these students through the First Mile Program. The graduates were Jennifer Alobo, Brenda Ninsima, Joseph Atukwase, Johnan Turyasingura, Nagaba Ritah, [...]

2106, 2021

CGH Launches Grant to Support Researchers in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

June 21st, 2021|Categories: Uncategorized|

This story is part of our Summer 2021 Newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. CGH RECENTLY LAUNCHED the MGH Global Health Finish Line Grant (GHFLG). The grant aims to provide junior investigators and trainees from MGH global health faculty partner sites with the funds, support, and mentorship they need to bring their research projects to completion. With the creation of the GHFLG, CGH acknowledges the financial and [...]

2705, 2021

Responding to COVID-19: The Role of Mental Health in Global Research

May 27th, 2021|Categories: Global Health, Global Health Research|

Andrew Wooyoung Kim, PhD, knew the COVID-19 pandemic could lead to a global mental health crisis, including among his research participants and staff in South Africa. Kim, a biological anthropologist and 2020 Fogarty Fellow, has conducted research in South Africa since 2017 and lived in the country since August 2019. His research primarily focuses on the intergenerational effects of racial trauma on mental health. As part of his PhD [...]

705, 2021

Supporting COVID-19 Response Efforts in India: A Conversation with Dr. Pooja Yerramilli

May 7th, 2021|Categories: COVID-19, GDR COVID-19, Global Disaster Response|

On May 5th, India reported 412,431 new COVID-19 infections and 3,980 deaths. Since mid- April, the country has seen an increase in infections and deaths which has rapidly overwhelmed the country’s healthcare and public health infrastructure. Pooja Yerramilli, MD, MPH, MGH Global Medicine Resident shares an update on the situation and work being done through the volunteer group India COVID SOS, whom she volunteers with. From the conversations you [...]

2704, 2021

Supporting India’s COVID-19 Response

April 27th, 2021|Categories: COVID-19, GDR COVID-19, Global Health|

On Monday April 26, India reported 352,991 cases of COVID-19 infection, breaking the world-record for daily cases in a country for the fifth consecutive day. On the same day, India reported 2,812 deaths, bringing the country’s total to 195,123 deaths. India has vaccinated less than 10% of its population and is struggling to meet vaccine demand. Though the country has been an important producer of vaccine doses, many of [...]

604, 2021

Steering the Asylum Clinic to the Future: How the Asylum Clinic Responded to COVID-19

April 6th, 2021|Categories: COVID-19, Global Health|

The MGH Asylum Clinic at the Center for Global Health—founded in October 2017—provides forensic medical and psychological evaluations to survivors of persecution seeking asylum in the United States and to seeks to educate the medical community on caring for asylum-seekers and refugees. Since its inception, the clinic, a part of the MGH Center for Global Health’s Disaster Response and Humanitarian Action programs, has completed evaluations for 325 asylum-seekers. Asylum [...]

1203, 2021

Advancing Equitable Global Health Research

March 12th, 2021|Categories: Global Health, Global Health Research|

Jessica Haberer MD, MS believes that strong global health research starts with equitable partnerships. Dr. Haberer is the Director of Research at the Mass General’s Center for Global Health (CGH). She is a leader in HIV/AIDS research—specifically around adherence to antiretrovirals and pre-exposure prophylaxis. Her global health work began in the early 2000’s when she found herself working for the Clinton Foundation in China. There she worked with the [...]

1203, 2021

The Global Medicine Residency Program Prepares the Next Generation of Global Health Physicians

March 12th, 2021|Categories: Global Health|

Since late 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic has taken the lives of nearly 2.5million individuals. Global healthcare leaders with the passion and expertise to help communities navigate the complex web of problems that COVID-19 has exacerbated are needed. The MGH Global Medicine Residency Program attempts to create leaders dedicated to advancing global health equity and strengthening health systems by combining strong medical training with the foundational belief that health, and [...]

1203, 2021

Expanding the Role of Pharmacists in Global Health

March 12th, 2021|Categories: Global Health|

High income countries have nearly eight pharmacists for every 10,000 people. In many low-income countries, there is not a single pharmacist for 10,000 people. Instead, doctors, nurses, or other clinical staff shoulder the duties of pharmacists, while continuing to manage other clinical care. This lack of trained pharmacists’ taxes health systems globally and prevents many from getting necessary care. Carmela Berlin RPh, Christine Do, PharmD, BCPPS, and Thuyhong Do, [...]

1203, 2021

Center for Global Health hosts webinar: COVID-19 Vaccine & Global Health Equity: From Action to Impact

March 12th, 2021|Categories: COVID-19, Global Health|

On December 8, 2020 the first COVID-19 vaccine was administered in the United Kingdom. However, before vaccine manufacturing had been completed, global powers had bought up a disproportionate number of doses, leaving low and middle-income countries scrambling to figure out how to purchase doses for their residents. “We have to work, as Dr. King referred to in 1963, ‘in the fierce urgency of now,’” said John Nkengasong, MSc, PhD, [...]

1203, 2021

Center for Global Health Launches Program to Foster Diversity in HIV Research

March 12th, 2021|Categories: Global Health, Global Health Research|

The HIV/AIDS epidemic in globally and in the United States is concentrated in Black communities, among men who have sex with men, and other minority groups. Yet the researchers that study the virus often do not come from these underrepresented groups, but come from more privileged backgrounds. To address this issue, Jessica Haberer, MD, MS, Wafaie W. Fawzi, PhD, MB, BS, and Sherri-Ann Burnett-Bowie, MD, launched the Fostering Diversity in [...]

303, 2021

An Open Letter on Global COVID-19 Vaccine Equity

March 3rd, 2021|Categories: COVID-19, Global Health|

March 3rd, 2021 An open letter to President Biden, and leaders of the US pharmaceutical industry, On February 24th, 2021, Ghana received the first shipment of COVID-19 vaccine secured by COVAX, the World Health Organization’s facility for global vaccine distribution. While this was an important milestone for the countries relying on COVAX to procure COVID-19 vaccinations, this shipment comes more than two months after the U.S. and other high-income [...]

1911, 2020

MGH Global Disaster Response and Global Nursing Program join together to support clinical responses in Matamoros, Mexico and Pine Ridge, South Dakota

November 19th, 2020|Categories: COVID-19, GDR COVID-19, Global Disaster Response, Global Health Nursing|

The Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Center for Global Health (CGH) Office of Global Disaster Response and Humanitarian Action (GDR) has teamed up with the MGH Global Nursing program to provide clinical care responses in Matamoros, Mexico and Pine Ridge, South Dakota. Flags hang in the Matamoros camp representing the home countries of camp residents. Matamoros, a border city and receiving site for individuals seeking asylum in the [...]

1011, 2020

Helping Holyoke Fight COVID-19

November 10th, 2020|Categories: COVID-19, Global Health|

In the spring during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Massachusetts, Harvard Medical student Ahmed Elnaiem saw firsthand how equity issues affected residents in Holyoke, one of the poorest cities in the state. Ahmed’s interest in social justice stems from his own childhood. His passion for exploring medicine’s role in addressing inequities led him to his mentor, Louise Ivers, MD, executive director of the Center for Global Health at Massachusetts General [...]

3010, 2020

In Loving Memory of our Dear Friend and Colleague
Dr. Bosco Mwebesa Bwana
30 June 1976 – 27 October 2020

October 30th, 2020|Categories: GHC|

Please email Kerry Phelan for access to a recording of the 11/10 tribute to Dr. Bosco Bwana As a leading physician scientist on HIV adherence and antiretroviral therapy, Dr. Bosco Bwana impacted the lives of thousands of individuals living with HIV both in Uganda and abroad. Dr. Bosco showed true compassion, caring for his patients like they were a part of his family and educating his students to do [...]

3010, 2020

Building Global Health Resilience in the Face of COVID-19

October 30th, 2020|Categories: COVID-19, Global Health|

AT THIS PIVOTAL MOMENT in global health, Vanessa Kerry, MD, MSc, is among the Mass General leaders working tirelessly to address the deep-rooted health disparities that have put the world’s most vulnerable populations at higher risk of COVID-19 infection and death. In the U.S., the death rate in areas with majority populations of color is six times higher than in majority non-Hispanic white areas, according to analysis by the [...]

3010, 2020

Lab Collaboration Increases COVID-19 Testing Capacity in Haiti, Bangladesh

October 30th, 2020|Categories: COVID-19, Global Health|

THE MASS GENERAL Center for Global Health (CGH) played a key role in the dissemination of MGH’s COVID ELISA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) antibody test to support the urgent need for accurate testing and disease surveillance in Haiti and Bangladesh.Once Mass General had its ELISA test developed in March, Jason Harris, MD, MPH, Chief of Pediatric Global Health at Mass General Hospital for children, CGH Executive Director Louise Ivers, MD, MPH, [...]

3010, 2020

New COVID Treatment Center in Mbarara to See First Patients

October 30th, 2020|Categories: COVID-19, Global Health|

ON APRIL 1, Mass General Center for Global Health (CGH) partner Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital (MRRH) broke ground on a new temporary COVID-19 Treatment Center that will more than triple the hospital’s capacity to properly manage, isolate and treat patients with COVID-19 as well as other highly infectious diseases. MRRH is a 600-bed hospital with a current full isolation capacity of only 16 beds housed in a temporary shed. [...]

3010, 2020

Nurses Deployed to Navajo Nation

October 30th, 2020|Categories: COVID-19, GDR COVID-19, Global Disaster Response, Global Health, Global Health Nursing|

THIS SUMMER, the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Center for Global Health (CGH) Office of Global Disaster Response and Humanitarian Action (GDRHA), in response to a request for support from longtime GDRHA partner Project Hope, deployed four experienced nursing staff to the Navajo Nation to assist with the care of patients admitted to Indian Health Service facilities amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Team Lead and Director of Global Disaster Response and [...]

3010, 2020

New Protective Booths Improve COVID Testing

October 30th, 2020|Categories: COVID-19, Global Health|

AN INNOVATIVE SOLUTION from Mass General employees is helping increase testing capacity while limiting risk to health care providers and patients and conserving limited supplies of personal protective equipment. Kristian Olson, MD, Director of CAMTech and Mass General Hospital’s Springboard Studio, in conjunction with an external design firm, has developed “Hexapods”—personal protective booths equipped with three gloved external hand ports, allowing clinicians to administer a swab test to patients [...]

3010, 2020

Increasing Safe Isolation and Surge Capacity

October 30th, 2020|Categories: Global Health|

MGH Photography; Kate Flock; Quality Inn Revere; Chelsea Covid-19 Isolation Hotel IN APRIL, MassGeneral Brigham and Boston Healthcare for the Homeless opened Boston Hope, a 1,000-bed medical center inside the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center designed to safely isolate, test and treat COVID-19 patients experiencing homelessness while reducing density at area hospitals. Geren Stone, MD, Director of the MGH Global Medicine Residency and Fellowship Program, was among [...]

3010, 2020

Asylum Clinic Advocates for Release of ICE Detainees

October 30th, 2020|Categories: Global Health|

THE MGH ASYLUM CLINIC, led by Matt Gartland, MD, Director of the Center for Global Health (CGH) Asylum Clinic, has been instrumental in securing the release of several immigrants from a detention facility in North Dartmouth. Gartland recently co-authored an article published in Lancet Infectious Diseases examining the elevated risk of COVID-19 to incarcerated individuals, including immigrants in ICE detention. In collaboration with Nathan Praschan, MD, MGH Psychiatry, he [...]

3010, 2020

Holyoke COVID-19 Community Antibody Study

October 30th, 2020|Categories: COVID-19, Global Health|

The Holyoke Board of Health and Massachusetts General Hospital are conducting a research study to determine how many people in Holyoke have had COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. It aims to find out who has been most at risk for COVID-19 so far, and to learn more about how it spreads. Why is it important? The spread of COVID-19 has impacted many communities, forcing city and state [...]

3010, 2020

CGH Launches Global Health Research Collaborative

October 30th, 2020|Categories: Global Health Research|

FEBRUARY 25 marked the official launch of the Mass General Global Health Research Collaborative (GHRC)—a formal network of research groups and global health research faculty across MGH departments, institutes and centers. Convened by the Mass General Center for Global Health (CGH), the Collaborative meets quarterly and focuses on the exchange of meaningful research findings and the creation of pioneering bench, clinical and population health research partnerships, the results of [...]

1509, 2020

A city that defines love and life- Mass General Deploys Surgeon to support Beirut response.

September 15th, 2020|Categories: Global Disaster Response|

The Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Center for Global Health (CGH) Office of Global Disaster Response and Humanitarian Action (GDRHA) has deployed Dr. Haytham Kaafarani, from the MGH department of Surgery, Trauma, Emergency Surgery & Surgical Critical Care, to provide trauma and critical care support to those affected by the August 4th explosion in Beirut, Lebanon. On August 4, two explosions tore through the city of Beirut, the second of [...]

3108, 2020

Global Disaster Response Monitoring Active Hurricane Season

August 31st, 2020|Categories: Global Disaster Response|

Updated August 31st, 2020 Hurricane Laura made landfall on the Louisiana and Texas coasts on August 27th as a Category 4 storm. Sustained winds as high as 150 mph destroyed homes and business and the cut power to hundreds of thousands.  The storm surge has since caused devastating flooding in coastal communities. In these areas already greatly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, there will be a critical need for [...]

1108, 2020

Global Disaster Response Partners Supporting Beirut, Lebanon

August 11th, 2020|Categories: Global Disaster Response|

On August 4, two explosions tore through the city of Beirut, the second of which registered as a 3.3 magnitude earthquake, killing at least 220 people, injuring over 6,000, and leaving roughly 300,000 homeless. The MGH Center for Global Health stands with the people of Beirut as well as our colleagues who have been affected by this tragic event. Several of the Center’s Global Disaster Response partner organizations are [...]

1806, 2020

Mass General Deploys Team to Support COVID-19 Response in Navajo Nation

June 18th, 2020|Categories: COVID-19, GDR COVID-19, Global Disaster Response, Global Health Nursing|

The Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Center for Global Health (CGH) Office of Global Disaster Response and Humanitarian Action (GDR) has deployed a team this week to provide a professional response in support of one of the many communities of the Navajo Nation affected by COVID-19. The Navajo Nation has the highest COVID-19 infection rate per capita than any individual US state. The Indian Health Service (IHS), which provides direct [...]

1004, 2020

Global Health Collaborative Builds New COVID-19 Treatment Center

April 10th, 2020|Categories: COVID-19, Global Health|

Led by Stephen Asiimwe and Annet Kembabazi, The Global Health Collaborative (GHC) is closely working with key partners, Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST), Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital (MRRH), and CGH Boston, to enhance capacity and support for regional COVID-19 response. With support of The Wyss Foundation, and in collaboration with MUST senior leaders, we are repurposing some resources from the First Mile program towards the COVID-19 response. [...]

2002, 2020

“Meet Them Where They Are”: The Role of Hair Salons in South African Sexual Health

February 20th, 2020|Categories: Global Health Research|

Less than half of individuals diagnosed with HIV in South Africa, the country with the largest HIV epidemic in the world, receive adequate treatment. Ever since her first research project related to HIV testing in South Africa in 2004, Ingrid Bassett, MD, MPH, has been focused on connecting vulnerable populations with available services.

102, 2020

Global Nursing Fellow Works with Ugandan Counterparts on Neonatal Intensive Care

February 1st, 2020|Categories: Global Health Nursing|

As a recipient of an MGH Global Nursing Fellowship through the Center for Global Health, Duran recently spent 18 days teaching and training with nurses, students, midwives and residents in the Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital (MRRH) NICU in Uganda. “This was a dynamic group of learners eager for professional development, so the energy was powerful,” she said. Jennifer Duran, RN, in the MGH NICU. Each morning Duran [...]

401, 2020

Americares Field Report: Caring for Typhoon Survivors in the Pacific

January 4th, 2020|Categories: Global Disaster Response|

“Everywhere you looked there were flattened buildings—metal awnings twisted like corkscrews and piles of debris,” said Paulina Zajac, who coordinated a team from Americares and Massachusetts General Hospital in the aftermath of Super Typhoon Yutu this past fall. Historic Storm A flattened warehouse at Francisco C. Ada/Saipan International Airport. The most powerful storm to ever strike the Northern Mariana Islands, Yutu was the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane [...]

2210, 2019

“We will make it. We will get there”: MGHfC 2018 Pediatric Global Health Summit

October 22nd, 2019|Categories: Global Health|

The MassGeneral Hospital for Children and the MGH Center for Global Health hosted the 2018 Pediatric Global Health Summit on October 15. The event drew health care providers, advocates and scientists from the New England area and was highlighted by presentations from pediatricians across the globe. Inspiring Keynote (From left) Jason Harris, MD, MPH, FAAP, FIDSA, Agnes Binagwaho, MD, PhD, Ronald Kleinman, MD, and Louise Ivers, MBBCH, BAO, [...]

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