WHO and Laerdal: $ 12.5 million for better acute care!

WHO and Laerdal: $ 12.5 million for better acute care!

The WHO Foundation and Laerdal Global Health have announced an important philanthropic partnership in order to significantly improve acute care in countries with low and medium income. This initiative was presented on May 20, 2025 during the World Health Assembly and includes financial support of $ 12.5 million. According to OTS more than half of the deaths in these countries are prevented by effective emergency care.

As part of this cooperation, a program is implemented to improve the training of health specialists in acute care in selected African countries. The support includes training courses on basic emergency care in 400 hospitals, supplemented by specially developed training kits for ongoing training at the workplace. These measures are part of the so-called Basic Emergency Care (BEC) program, which was launched in 2016 by the WHO together with the International Committee from the Red Cross and the International Federation for Emergency Medicine.

promotion of sustainable health systems

The establishment of a financing consortium called Lifeline: The Acute Care Action Fund is in the context of this initiative and aims to mobilize $ 25 million. This is intended to expand the program to 1,000 hospitals in five or more countries, which could save an estimated 50,000 lives a year. Earlier studies have shown that the introduction of the BEC program in initial care hospitals in Africa and Asia has led to a mortality reduction of 34 to 50 percent in acute diseases, as well as Who> reported.

The context of such initiatives is illustrated by the challenging health situation in many developing countries. Poverty, a lack of access to medical care and social uproot are among the most common factors that affect the health of the population, as can be seen on BMZ The WHO and the World Bank estimate that around 100 million people slip into poverty every year due to medical costs.

With the upcoming support of Laerdal Global Health and the WHO Foundation, another step will take to stabilize and improve the state of health in the most affected regions.