Danyaal Raza, a medical student from The University of Western Ontario, Canada, reports on the first day of the 5^th Annual Unite for Sight Conference  at Yale-RhonaDanyaal

Unite for Sight’s 5^th Annual Conference  began this weekend at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Running the course of the weekend, UFS has brought together a broad range of speakers discussing global health issues, extending beyond the organization’s ophthalmologic focus. I was fortunate enough to be in an auditorium of over 2000 during a keynote address delivered by Dr. Jim Kim. For anyone familiar with Tracy Kidder’s Mountains Beyond Mountains or the work of Paul Farmer, Dr. Kim is considered a remarkable man. To global health advocates, he is what Larry Bird  is to many basketball fans; as elegant with words as Bird is with 3-pointers and as effective in his health projects as Bird was in winning NBA championship games.

Using past TB and HIV/AIDS projects as a starting point and reflecting on his love/hate relationship with the WHO, Dr Kim drove home a message has began to make waves in the global health community; the importance of effective health delivery. In the past, the struggle to obtain appropriate financing was ever present. However, with the founding of the Gates Foundation and the contributions of Warren Buffet, more and more NGO’s are gaining financial traction. The challenge now lies in managing funds and ensuring their effective and efficient use. Dr. Kim highlighted his message by drawing from his recent consultation with colleagues at the Harvard School of Business,  McKinsey Consulting and MIT’s Department of Systems Engineering.

Others also touched on this theme, but with varying degrees of success and from different perspectives. During a session titled “Using for Profit Vehicles to Achieve Non-Profit goals,” a banker, businessman and tax lawyer crashed and burned attempting to convey their strategies. A representative from the World Bank had more success in a separate room, but by no means had captured the audience. The disconnect that exists between MDs/MPHs and MBAs/Economists highlighted by Dr. Kim, only became more evident as the day wore on.

Tomorrow, the world’s most famous (and Bono’s favorite) economist, Jeffery Sachs will be adding his opinion to the mix. The final day of the conference opens with an address entitled “Common Wealth: Economics for a Crowded Planet.” Details to come soon! Danyaal Raza: draza2009@meds.uwo.ca

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