Welcome!

Creating a GHPN network node in Pakistan

Further advancing towards our vision of "Engaging Veterinary Pathologists in Global Health", the newest member of GHPN, Dr. Isthiaq Ahmend, has created a network of veterinary pathologists and veterinarians among institutions in Pakistan. Together with the GHPN co-member, Dr. Sarah Corner, they have initiated telepathology efforts among the pathology colleagues at the University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences in Lahore along with other universities in Pakistan and the United States. The goal, in alignment with our three main focus areas, is to facilitate meaningful international engagement through consult on the necropsy and histopathology findings of current cases, providing continuing education opportunities on relevant topics based on regional need/interest, and creating a platform to share ideas and opportunities related to veterinary pathology and Global Health. The telepathology provides the opportunity for veterinarians and veterinary pathologists in remote locations to connect and participate. A Standard Operating Procedures document for basic telepathology setup is available here. We hope this this initial network node in Pakistan and SOP (as well as the other tools provided by GHPN) will encourage and serve as a general guide for those of you signed on to the GHPN to set up telepathology efforts in other locations based on your regional connections.

Telepathology Setup

You have reached the Global Health Pathology Network (GHPN) website. We are a small, but growing team across professions within pathology to serve as a centralized resource and knowledge base to facilitate pathology engagement in Global Health.

The network is open to all countries for pathologists, pathology residents and veterinary students to join, as well as other professions that seek pathology engagement in their institution or work.

Our three main focus areas are to 1) provide shared informational and guidance forums to facilitate meaningful international engagement and support outreach by educational programs; 2) facilitate self-directed connections in the network that may lend to regional/country-specific groups for joint capacity building; and 3) use the network expertise to respond to requests for ground work pathology training and basic work in less developed countries received by the CL Davis and SW Thompson DVM Foundation under which we operate. To learn more, please review our article, an excerpt of which is below (Brown et al. Promoting Global Health through Pathology: Initiation of the Global Health Pathology Network. Vet Pathology May 2018):

The American College of Veterinary Pathologists (ACVP), as well as other formal Pathology colleges, are organizations with considerable member expertise, which can be put to great use in various locations around the world. Veterinary pathologists are well positioned to take advantage of the globalization phenomenon, participating in activities with colleagues in other lands and to be leaders in global health efforts. Internationally, there are 2 large realms in which veterinary pathologists can readily contribute. One is in capacity building, that is, aiding resource-constrained or less developed countries in the enhancement and support of local and regional animal health systems. This can be through providing training and infrastructure for basic surveillance and diagnosis of animal diseases, especially focusing on those for public good and with transboundary potential. The second is in supplying technical expertise in research and diagnosis, through virtual or in-person connections. Among other disciplines, histotechicians are critical to enable pathology capacity building and supplying technical expertise, and thus are a natural synergy for the pathology network.