When someone in the United States experiences medical distress, the first response of those at the emergency scene is typically to call 911.
But this amenity of emergency medical service is not afforded to the people of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where no paramedics or ambulances exist. A group of GW doctors and students hopes to change that.
Last month a team of professionals and students visited Addis Ababa on a needs-assessment trip the Ronald Reagan Institute of Emergency Medicine and Students for International Medical Action planned.
About a dozen volunteers assessed the severity of the country's emergency medical services, helped treat patients and brainstormed ideas specific to Ethiopia about how to implement needed services.
"Emergency health care ... is an important part of any healthcare system," said Tenagne Haile-Mariam, an assistant emergency medicine professor and an Ethiopian native who led the risk assessment trip. "Countries such as Ethiopia that are in the process of building up national healthcare systems should strive to include provisions for emergency care. This will help insure good allocation of resources and health security."
Maria Smeby, executive coordinator of the Ronald Reagan Institute of Emergency Medicine, said the Institute's primary goal is helping developing countries start or expand their emergency medical service departments. According to the institute's Web site, in addition to working in Ethiopia, the group has worked to implement emergency medical services in 12 countries around the world.
"Everyone has the right to efficient treatment and emergency medicine," Smeby said. "We can teach that system to places that don't have them."
Two 4th-year medical students at GW, Jeremy Berman and Zach Steinberg, founded SIMA. The organization allows other medical students to spend some of the six-week rotations required of fourth-year medical students in Ethiopia.
Elizabeth Fihe, a participant of the trip and an International Emergency Medicine Fellow at the Ronald Reagan Institute of Emergency Medicine, said the biggest issue for Ethiopia is the country's lack of resources for acquiring medical equipment.
But this amenity of emergency medical service is not afforded to the people of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where no paramedics or ambulances exist. A group of GW doctors and students hopes to change that.
Last month a team of professionals and students visited Addis Ababa on a needs-assessment trip the Ronald Reagan Institute of Emergency Medicine and Students for International Medical Action planned.
About a dozen volunteers assessed the severity of the country's emergency medical services, helped treat patients and brainstormed ideas specific to Ethiopia about how to implement needed services.
"Emergency health care ... is an important part of any healthcare system," said Tenagne Haile-Mariam, an assistant emergency medicine professor and an Ethiopian native who led the risk assessment trip. "Countries such as Ethiopia that are in the process of building up national healthcare systems should strive to include provisions for emergency care. This will help insure good allocation of resources and health security."
Maria Smeby, executive coordinator of the Ronald Reagan Institute of Emergency Medicine, said the Institute's primary goal is helping developing countries start or expand their emergency medical service departments. According to the institute's Web site, in addition to working in Ethiopia, the group has worked to implement emergency medical services in 12 countries around the world.
"Everyone has the right to efficient treatment and emergency medicine," Smeby said. "We can teach that system to places that don't have them."
Two 4th-year medical students at GW, Jeremy Berman and Zach Steinberg, founded SIMA. The organization allows other medical students to spend some of the six-week rotations required of fourth-year medical students in Ethiopia.
Elizabeth Fihe, a participant of the trip and an International Emergency Medicine Fellow at the Ronald Reagan Institute of Emergency Medicine, said the biggest issue for Ethiopia is the country's lack of resources for acquiring medical equipment.
