2007 National Student PSR Conference Report
The US student branch of IPPNW, Student Physicians for Social Responsibility, held its 2007 National Conference entitled “Medical Consequences of War” from February 23-25 at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California.
An audience of physicians and students attended an undeniable highlight of the conference Saturday night: the keynote speech delivered by Dr. Les Roberts, PhD, MPH, author of the 2006 Lancet study, “Mortality after the 2003 invasion of Iraq: a cross-sectional cluster sample survey”. This landmark study on Iraqi mortality has faced undue criticism in the American press despite its strong scientific basis and airtight methodology. Dr. Roberts drew from his experiences as a researcher in Iraq, and extensive experience implementing surveys in high-conflict zones to urge conference participants to utilize real public health data to bring about evidence-based change for global health betterment. He urged attendees not to lose sight of concrete solutions to daunting tasks; one example given was the well-known relationship between maternal literacy and infant mortality. The talk was inspiring to students and physicians alike. Joshua Cook conducted an interview with Dr. Roberts prior to the keynote address, which is included in this issue of ePulse.
Photo: Dr. Les Roberts of Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health shares President George W. Bush's deep understanding of the use of cross-sectional cluster sampling to measure mortality during times of civil unrest.