Dear colleagues,
Lately there have been a few major challenges facing the Australian medical system
including the physical and mental health consequences of the horrendous bushfire season
and the likely upcoming major impact of dealing with a deadly viral pandemic. The latter in
particular has the potential to hugely stretch even our very substantial first world medical
resources. The bushfires, which are widely thought to be at least partly attributable to
climate change and the COVID-19 viral infection have a feature in common; they are both
consequences of actions largely outside our own borders.
To me this is a reminder and a wake-up call that we live in a single biosphere and with the
world being so interconnected we can no longer afford to adopt a myopic view of the
factors that may contribute to our wellbeing.
Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director general of the World Health Organization,
has warned repeatedly of the toll the virus could exact in places with weak health systems.
And these days, more than ever, “what goes around comes around”.
At Twice the Doctor foundation, we have always sought to support programmes that
strengthen the medical resources of some of the most under resourced countries in the
world. I hope you agree that this approach is not only the right thing to do on a
humanitarian basis but is also likely to pay long term dividends in securing our own personal
health.
Regards to all
Rob Baume
On behalf of the Directors of Twice the Doctor Foundation
PS:
I was recently in contact with Dr Tamsin Lillie in the UK who advised me of an organisation
called Medic to Medic which seems to have very similar ideals to TTD. In the last 10 years
they have assisted over 100 students graduate to become qualified health workers in Malawi – one of the poorest countries in Africa.
Check out their website: https://www.medictomedic.org.uk/