Wayne State University School of Medicine alumnus Stephen Shaya, M.D. '96, medical director of J&B Medical Supply, presented at the Fourth International Vatican Conference, held April 26-28, in Vatican City, as part of a Global Health Initiative to #UniteToCure. In his panel, Dr. Shaya spoke about the challenges facing global health and the opportunity to extend the reach of health care by leveraging technology.
"I was honored to present at the venerated conference. It was an amazing opportunity to demonstrate what J&B Medical has been doing all over the world in countries like Pakistan, Iraq and Ghana, to make health care affordable and accessible," Dr. Shaya said. "The world needs to find solutions to make health care for the poor preventative, accessible and affordable and J&B Medical is proud to be part of this essential global effort."
The challenge to deliver quality and affordable health care globally has increased in recent years. The prevalence of diabetes has increased 66 percent during the last 10 years, placing the disease among the leading causes of death and disability worldwide. Cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and lung diseases caused 37 percent of all deaths in low-income countries. A shortage of health care professionals exacerbates the problem as an aging world is forced to deal with major disparities in care delivery.
"Democratizing access to health care is an important theme for this historic event," said Robin Smith, M.D., president of the Cura Foundation. "It's absolutely vital that all regions and peoples across the world have equal access to the incredible, life-changing therapies and powerful technologies we're reading about every day."
The Fourth International Vatican Conference brings together leading journalists, scientists, physicians, patients, ethicists and leaders of faith, government and philanthropy to engage in conversations on how scientific advances coupled with cooperation can provide hope for the future with improved health care for all.
The Cura Foundation leads a major global health movement to improve health by uniting public and private sectors, partnering with doctors, patients, business leaders, philanthropists and thought leaders to collaborate and create breakthroughs around the world. The foundation drives change by raising awareness of scientific advancements in genomics, emerging technologies and big data to usher in the future of medicine.