Professor Mark Shrime, co-author on the Lancet Commission on Global Surgery, has been appointed O’Brien Chair of Global Surgery at RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences.

Professor Shrime will lead the University’s Institute of Global Surgery in its work to address the provision of surgical care in low and middle-income countries.

Professor Shrime joins RCSI from Harvard Medical School and the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, where he was Director of the Center for Global Surgery Evaluation.

The groundbreaking Lancet Commission Report, ‘Global Surgery 2030’, highlighted the stark and troubling deficit in the equity of surgical and anaesthesia care globally. Every year, an estimated 140 million people who needed surgical procedures to save their lives or to prevent long-term disability did not get them and an estimated 81 million people who receive surgical care are impoverished by its costs. 

Professor Shrime’s work focuses on surgical delivery in low and middle-income countries, where he has a specific interest in the intersection of health and impoverishment. He is the author of a number of seminal papers on the global burden of surgical disease, the financial burden facing surgical patients and the number of people who cannot access safe surgery worldwide.

Confirming his acceptance of the O’Brien Chair of Global Surgery, Professor Shrime said: “I am tremendously excited to join the stellar team at the RCSI Institute of Global Surgery. I look forward to building on the decade of innovation that the university has driven in global surgery to create a holistic, patient-centred, equity-driven approach to surgical systems strengthening.”

Building on extensive experience in surgical training, education and research partnerships in Africa, the RCSI Institute of Global Surgery works with local partners to develop sustainable surgical care systems in low and middle-income countries. The Institute has a dual focus: capacity-building to alleviate the surgical burden, and high-impact research to set the foundation for greater growth.

Announcing Professor Shrime’s appointment, RCSI Chief Executive Officer Professor Cathal Kelly said: “We are delighted to welcome Mark Shrime as the O’Brien Chair of Global Surgery at RCSI. For over 10 years, we have pioneered and accelerated change to provide solutions to the surgical deficit, focusing on low and middle-income countries. It is our dedicated surgical focus, research capacity and sustainable partnership model that positions us well to make a significant and lasting impact on surgical access globally. I greatly look forward to seeing Professor Shrime and his team further expand and amplify this important work over the coming years.”

Watch a video with Professor Shrime here