Source: World Health Organization (WHO)
MANILA, 15 October 2025 – For a woman with obstructed labour, safe surgery can mean the difference between life and death. For a child with appendicitis, it can prevent lifelong complications. For a father with a diabetic foot infection, it can spare his leg. Yet across the Western Pacific, too many people still face unsafe, delayed surgery or cannot afford surgery altogether. These risks can turn a chance to heal into lasting harm.
WHO highlights that safe, accessible and affordable surgical care is essential for universal health coverage. It is also one of the smartest investments in health, with the potential to avert 1.5 million deaths every year in low- and middle-income countries. But to deliver on this promise, systems must shift from isolated solutions to integrated, people-centred care.
“Surgery should save lives, not break them,” said Dr Saia Ma’u Piukala, WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific. “Every operation – no matter its scale and scope – must be safe, every patient must be protected from catastrophic costs, and every health worker must be equipped to deliver the best care. That's why at our upcoming 76th Regional Committee, we’re putting safer surgery on the agenda, calling on Ministers of Health and policymakers to drive solutions that benefit health for all.”
Why it matters
Surgical care improvements are not only for the operating theatre; they strengthen entire health systems as a part of continuum of care. To give every baby the best start in life, countries require adequate distribution of skilled health workforce. Fewer mortality from road injury demands strong promotion, prevention and referral system in place. Safer surgery also forestalls the danger of antimicrobial resistance and builds resilience for emergencies.
Countries in the Western Pacific are already making progress:
- Cambodia, Fiji, Mongolia, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu are improving sterilization, infection control, and appropriate antibiotic use in surgery.
- Lao People’s Democratic Republic and Papua New Guinea are strengthening essential intrapartum care to improve maternal, newborn and child care and reduce unnecessary caesareans or other surgical procedures.
- Solomon Islands is tackling diabetic foot complications by catching and treating cases early, reducing the need for amputations.
- Kiribati has pioneered leadership training for nurses, empowering them to improve hospital quality and governance from the ground up.
- Cambodia, Samoa and Tonga have launched national surgical, obstetric and anaesthesia plans (NSOAPs), prioritizing access to safe, timely and affordable surgical care for all.
Looking ahead
At the 76th session of the WHO Regional Committee for the Western Pacific, Member States will consider new steps to scale up safer surgery. WHO is urging governments to:
- Embed essential surgery in universal health coverage packages to ensure essential surgical care is available for all and protect families from catastrophic costs.
- Expand the use of low-cost, proven safety measures like sterilization audits and the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist.
- Invest in leadership and governance so hospital teams, from surgeons to nurses, can sustain continuous quality improvements.
- Strengthen community-level referral systems to ensure timely, lifesaving surgical care as a part of Primary Health Care.
WHO remains committed to working with countries and partners to “weave health for all,” reflecting its regional vision that interlaces efforts, resources, and expertise to protect health, keep the Western Pacific safer, and serve the more than 2.2 billion people who live in this vast region.
For more on the 76th WHO Regional Committee for the Western Pacific, visit:https://www.who.int/westernpacific/about/governance/regional-committee/session-76