The Global Health Forum
The Global Health Forum is a monthly seminar series dedicated to educating healthcare professionals across specialties about the complexities of global health and the evolving needs of our increasingly interconnected community. This is crucial in a world where healthcare provision, disease transmission, and resource procurement transcend national boundaries. By sharing their experiences, leaders and experts from various fields in global health will spark a discussion on valuable lessons learned and the future directions of care across the world.
December Global Health Forum
December 5th, 2025
The ACCESS program is holding the December Global Health Forum on December 5th with Dr. Wesler Lambert of Zamni Lasante. It will take place at 5 PM in the Learning Theater of the MMEC.
Register: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1nAx1OzYvvUMw7UTKK5Sv4fH_hAy-8jnLLkmfQzs_-NU/edit
Description:
Dr. Wesler Lambert is the Executive Director of Zamni Lasante, Haiti's second-largest healthcare provider, following the Haitian government. This vital organization serves approximately 1.3 million individuals in some of the country’s most underserved and remote regions. In this discussion, Dr. Lambert will highlight the clinic’s crucial role in Haiti’s healthcare landscape and share insights into its response to the political turmoil that has impacted the nation this year.
Overview: Our Global Surgical Mission
Welcome to the VCU Program for Global Surgery. We invite you to see, share, and support the impact we can make around the world.
VCU Health is a public institution where we offer crucial regional support for patients and families regardless of their needs or their finances. We bring the same work ethic and compassion to institutions around the world to improve patient care in many hard-to-believe scenarios. According to The Lancet Commission on Global Surgery, five billion people around the world lack access to safe and affordable surgical care.
For several decades, our surgeons have worked across numerous countries to consult, teach, and support the development of other surgeons, trainees, and students to deliver the best care possible in their settings.
Meet Edgar Rodas, MD
Program Director
Edgar B. Rodas, MD, FACS
Director, VCU Program for Global Surgery
Associate Professor
Division of Acute Care Surgical Services
VCU Department of Surgery
ACCESS Program at VCU School of Medicine
Acute Care and Systems Strengthening in Low Resource Settings (ACCESS) Program
The ACCESS Program is a 4-year longitudinal academic program at the VCU School of Medicine that offers students interested in acute care such as Surgery, Emergency Medicine, Anesthesiology, OBGYN, and Critical Care a unique educational experience to acquire indispensable knowledge for the delivery of care in low-resource and international settings.
The program’s comprehensive, competency-based global health curriculum includes lectures, seminars, workshops, clinical specialty-based work, research, community engagement, and international collaborative partnerships. Learn more.
Funding Resources
If accepted, scholars will be asked to apply for available grants at VCU or other institutions/organizations to support their work. Self-funding is also acceptable.
Global Scholar Tracks
We encourage interested medical students, residents and fellows to work with VCU surgeons in collaboration with various global surgical partnerships.
Global Scholar TracksVCU Global Surgery Leaders and Partners
Currently working across three continents—South America, Africa, and East Asia—we are grateful to our Global Surgery Partners without whom we could not organize our missions. Equally important to our program is the generous support from collaborators Charles and Ginny Crone, who created the VCU-Crone Scholars Program, a collaboration between VCU and the Ministry of Health in Rwanda.
We invite you to learn more about our faculty leaders, their partners, and the surgical services they provide around the world.
Supporting Global Surgery
We encourage donations and in-kind support in order to enhance the mission of VCU Program for Global Surgery. Resident travel scholarships, teaching materials, technology services, all funding goes to support the mission of global surgery and global health.
Global Surgical Experiences
Through our global surgery program we offer vibrant opportunities for VCU faculty, trainees, and our partners to work together teaching and supporting the development of safe and affordable surgical care around the world.
Learn more about the individual experiences that illustrate the incredible diversity of training our faculty and institution have to offer.
Global Surgical ExperiencesHow to Contact Us
Edgar Rodas, MD, FACS
Director, VCU Program for Global Surgery
Associate Professor of Surgery
Division of Acute Care Surgical Services
Department of Surgery, VCU School of Medicine
edgar.rodas@vcuhealth.org