A vision for better child health
Every year 8.1 million children die before their fifth birthday – many from neonatal complications and preventable causes like diarrhoea, pneumonia and malaria. More than 340,000 women die from complications during pregnancy and childbirth.
This global issue will be the main topic of an upcoming forum at Monash University, chaired by the Reverend Tim Costello, CEO of World Vision Australia.
The forum is one of a number of activities carried out as the result of an alliance between Monash University and World Vision that was established two years ago. The forum will include a panel discussion involving some of Australia’s foremost experts on public health, midwifery, paediatrics and international development. It is a part of Vision Generation’s first international advocacy campaign, called Child Health Now.
Vision Generation is the youth arm of World Vision, encouraging people aged between 15 and 25 to speak out on behalf of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people. The campaign, Child Health Now, is a response to the health problems affecting children and mothers in developing countries around the world.
Professor David Copolov, Pro Vice Chancellor, Office of the Vice Chancellor said the forum will provide a good opportunity for staff to support a worthy – indeed imperative – cause.
“In May, Monash University became Australia’s first Child Health Now Community. It’s a title we’re honoured to have. We want to show how dedicated we are to this important campaign by making the event a great success.
“Because we live in a country with a low rate of child mortality it’s relatively easy to be shielded from the unacceptable scale of childhood deaths in developing countries. This forum promises to provide information that will challenge all of us, but also provide hope that there are practical steps that the world community can take to accelerate the momentum of childhood death rate reduction,” said Professor Copolov.
The guest panellists are:
- Sue England, a consultant midwife who provides maternal, child health, nutrition advice and technical support to World Vision funded health projects.
- Dr Chris Morgan, a Principal Fellow at the Burnet Institute’s Centre for International Health.
- Dr Alison Morgan, who has 20 years of experience in education and training in primary health care and maternal and child health.
- Rami Subhi from the School of Paediatrics at the Royal Children’s Hospital.
- Meg Howe, a registered nurse, who has been involved with World Vision for 8 years including being the Youth Ambassador in 2007.
The Child Health Now panel discussion will take place on Thursday 18 August from 6pm (light refreshments from 5.30pm) at Monash University’s Clayton Campus in Building 64.
RSVP essential by Thursday 11 August to Kelsey Paske at kelsey.paske@vgen.org