2015-11-19 16:30:00

Pontifical health care council has wide-ranging aims


(Vatican Radio) The Pontifical Council for Health Care Workers began on Thursday, concentrating on ‘The Culture of ‘Salus’ and Welcome at  the service of Man and the Planet’.

Bramble Badenach-Nicolson spoke with Dr Ariel Pablos-Mendez and Mr Mark Brinkmoeller, two USAID (US Agency for International Development) officials about the importance of the conference and USAID’s involvement.

Listen here: 

Previous years have focused on a specific issue, such as autism or AIDS. This year, however, the theme is much broader: man and the planet.

Mr Brinkmoeller described the council as “covering a wide swath of Catholic concerns… tying them to health”. He said it was a “comprehensive 360 degree look at the concerns of the church… and of Pope Francis”.

Dr Pablos-Mendez, head of USAID’s Global Health Bureau, located a particular issue being addressed this year, namely the prevention of infant mortality. “17 million children died in 1970”, he said. A further 12 million died in 1990. “Today, less than 6 million have died”. He was optimistic saying “we are 80 per cent of the way there”.

Now the focus is on newborns and their mothers. Dr Pablos-Mendez hopes that if USAID and the Vatican work together, they might be able to save one million babies’ lives by 2020. 








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