Data Innovation, Program Implementation, and Community Action (DIPICA) Observatory for Surgical, Anesthesia, and Obstetric (SAO) Care in India
The Data Innovation, Program Implementation, and Community Action (DIPICA) Observatory for Surgical, Anesthesia, and Obstetric (SAO) Care in India convened in December 2024 in New Delhi. This two-day program brought together experts from global surgery, public health, health policy, and clinical practice to address planned challenges in SAO care, focusing on data-driven approaches, sustainable financing, and workforce development. The discussions emphasized leveraging data to strengthen SAO care systems by creating practical data products for localized planning and community engagement. Participants advocated for dynamic observatories to support data-driven research and policy implementation, making SAO care more accessible and efficient. Sustainable financing emerged as a key focus, with experts discussing innovative approaches that move beyond conventional models. Community-based solutions, decentralized funding, and performance-based models were discussed as strategies to optimize resource allocation. Establishing partnerships involving government, private, and community sectors was highlighted as crucial for achieving financial sustainability, particularly in underserved areas. Workforce development discussions addressed competency-based training and task-sharing initiatives to reduce disparities. The attendees agreed on the need for structured training to enhance surgical skills, especially for general practitioners in rural areas. Regulatory policies on task-sharing and task-shifting were considered essential to maintaining care quality while expanding access. Improving trauma care and emergency response through targeted training and rural workforce retention also remained key priorities. Advocacy efforts focused on integrating SAO care into national health priorities through data-driven communication and public engagement. The observatory aims to sustain progress through collaborative research, advocacy, and policy dialogues to ensure equitable, accessible, and high-quality SAO care across India.
Authors
- Preeti Kumar (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9000-2266)
- Tej Prakash Sinha (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3779-1446)
- Shirish Rao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1150-4581)
- Dhruva Ghosh (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2976-0241)
- Nishikant Singh (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0502-9967)
- João Ricardo Nickenig Vissoci (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7276-0402)
- Anchal Dhiman
- Cara Swain (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0273-9653)
- Ritika Shetty
- Lovenish Bains (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8627-0452)
- Janet Martin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3599-8427)
- Jesudian Gnanaraj (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7444-5892)
- Siddhesh Zadey (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1176-1529)
- Rakesh Garg (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7037-4209)
- Sudheer Kumar Shukla (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4747-6992)
- R. K. Mishra (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0862-9220)
- Kapil Dev Soni (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1214-4119)
- Aiman Perween Afsar (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1680-3559)
- Rodney Preetham Vaz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-2908-5927)
- Rituparna Sengupta
- Priyansh Nathani (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4984-9278)
- Rahul M. Jindal (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8731-0671)
- Anoushka Arora (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8909-168X)
- Padmavathy Krishna Kumar
- Uma Gupta
- Naveen Sharma (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2298-654X)
- Rajesh Mehta (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2041-8661)
- Shreyas Patil (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7797-8400)
- Anurag Mishra (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0004-5156-505X)
- C. Damodar Reddy (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3737-4818)
- Lalit Gupta
- Shilpa Kulkarni (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3506-3533)
- Shikha Sharma
- Madhurima Vuddemarry
- Keyur Buch
- Maithili Kukade
- Pratheeba John
- Harsh Thakkar
- Suraj Bhor
- Kalpana Pawalia
- Ojaswi Phal Desai
- Sanjay Nagral
- Aaradhana Vaghela
Institutions
- Duke University (US)
- Christian Medical College, Vellore (IN)
- Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (IN)
- Maulana Azad Medical College (IN)
- Dr. D.Y. Patil Vidyapeeth, Pune (IN)
- Christian Medical College (IN)
- Duke Institute for Health Innovation (US)
- Maharashtra Association of Anthropological Sciences (IN)
- Society for Community Health Awareness Research and Action (IN)
- New York University (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- BMC Proceedings
- Published
- 2025-11-02
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1186/s12919-025-00351-3
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Global Health and Surgery
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.88
Funders
- Josiah Charles Trent Memorial Foundation
- Duke Global Health Institute, Duke University