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In his opening session remarks, Bob Arnot, MD, a physician and international humanitarian, shared many powerful stories where individuals and organizations worldwide are helping children survive the tragedies of war and disease.

“Those of us in medicine are making the biggest difference worldwide,” he said.

Arnot began his talk with a story of a 4-year-old girl in war-ravaged Somalia who needed a blood transfusion to survive. A pediatrician stepped forward to donate (type O) blood and saved the girl’s life. In another case, Arnot and colleagues found a young boy lying on the road in Rwanda and assumed he was dead. When they looked closer, they realized he was alive and administered oral hydration therapy.

“Within a few hours, he was up, alert and fighting,” Arnot said, adding that: “It’s amazing the power of collaboration … the galvanizing forces [to treat] sick children.”

Arnot discussed the importance of educating the lay public about international crises. He described “backpack journalism,” which requires the journalist to be a one-stop shop for reporting, filming and producing stories.

“I looked for a way to tell stories of the world [affordably],” he said. “For very little, we can tell these stories to the American public and inspire them.”

Returning to health care issues, Arnot examined international efforts to fight the HIV/AIDS epidemic. He honed in on Baylor University’s collaborative initiative with Botswana to treat youngsters with this disease and Population Services International’s program in Zimbabwe to encourage condom use.

Arnot emphasized that when collaborating with health care experts in developing countries, it is critical to encourage long-term success.

“Empower [professionals], train them and provide infrastructure,” he said.

Arnot ended his speech by emphasizing that “the most important rule in life is to be optimistic.” This quality, he said, can help improve the lives of people we treat.