Diana L. Farmer, M.D.
Diana L. Farmer, M.D.

Message from Diana L. Farmer, Chair of the Department of Surgery

The Department of Surgery at UC Davis has long been committed to supporting provisions for equitable access to surgical care worldwide. We have a long and illustrious track record of training and supporting global surgeons, who now themselves are leading the effort to improve surgical care worldwide. Our department has supporting resident global surgery activities in Nigeria, Mongolia, Tanzania, and elsewhere across a range of projects.
 
Under the leadership of Diana Farmer, M.D., the Chair of the Department of Surgery, UC Davis Surgery was instrumental in establishing the Global Initiative for Children's Surgery (GICS) in 2015. This first of its kind initiative has championed a multidisciplinary team approach to initiate and accelerate sustainable and safe surgical care for children in low-income countries. Farmer and her team, including Jamie Anderson, M.D. and former UCD surgery residents Laura Goodman, M.D. and Guy Jensen, M.D. made considerable progress in expanding partnerships and collaborations while enhancing infrastructure solutions, training, and research efforts. In recognition of this extraordinary leadership Farmer was awarded the U21 award in 2020 for her contribution to internationalization of higher education and global improvements in surgical care for children.  
 
The Department of Surgery has also been instrumental in establishing a range of programs in global surgery education and collaborative research, including the Alliance for Global Clinical Training and the UC Global Health Institute. We are proud to continue building on this rich history with the UC Davis Center for Global Surgery and help advance our mission to improve surgical care worldwide.