Small Working Groups

Active Status

Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Working Group

Leads: Caline Mattar (mattar.caline@gmail.com) and Pablo Estrella Porter (pestrellaporter@gmail.com)

• Mission:

To increase awareness about the emergence of AMR, important role of AMR stewardship, and use of the One Health framework to mitigate disease risk among humans, animals, and the surrounding ecosystem, to diverse target audiences, including students, health professionals, and the general public.

• Activities:
  • AMR Awareness Campaigns for WHO World Antibiotic Awareness Week (WAAW)
    • November 14-20, 2016: WMA JDN participated in this social media campaign (e.g., Twitter, Facebook) to help physicians improve their AMR practices and empower them to advocate for AMR stewardship.
    • November 12-18, 2018: WMA JDN participated in this social media campaign (e.g., Twitter, Facebook) to help physicians improve their AMR practices and empower them to advocate for AMR stewardship.
  • Revision of the WMA Policy on Antimicrobial Resistance
  • Contributions to commentaries to WHO documents on behalf of WMA
  • Part of the Quadripartite Working Group on Youth Engagement for Antimicrobial Resistance since October 2023

• Publications:
  • JDN cautions against antimicrobial resistance and promotes “One Health”. Junior Doctors Network Newsletter. 2017 Nov;0(12):16. https://issuu.com/mardelangelzapata/docs/revista_juniordoctors_curvas_ae176451e14c53
  • One Health and antimicrobial resistance. World Medical Journal. 2016 Oct;62(3):108−111. https://lab.arstubiedriba.lv/WMJ/vol62/3-october-2016/
  • Antibiotic stewardship: Future steps to reduce antimicrobial resistance in the global and clinical setting. World Medical Journal. 2017 Sep;63(2):25−30. https://lab.arstubiedriba.lv/WMJ/vol63/september-2017/#page=1

Comprehensive Primary Health Care Working Group

Leads: Flora Kuehne (florakuehne@gmail.com)

• Comprehensive Primary Health Care Working Group provides a platform for international collaboration, discussion and learning about the critical role PHC in health system strengthening and in achieving UHC and the SDGs
• The working group further supports members in PHC advocacy at national levels

• Publications:
  • Challenges and Opportunities in Providing Primary Health Care during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Six Countries. Junior Doctors Network Newsletter. 2020 July;0(19):71.
  • The Importance of Primary Health Care during Health Emergencies. Junior Doctors Network Newsletter. 2020 July;0(19):59.
  • The role of physicians and other primary health care providers in making the Astana declaration a success – a review of advocacy priorities for comprehensive Primary Health Care [conference poster]. WONCA Europe Conference. 2020 Dec.
  • Comprehensive Primary Health Care Working Group Update. Junior Doctors Network Newsletter. 2021 April;0(21):16.

COVID/Pandemic related working group

Leads: Wenzhen Zuo (wenzhen.zuo@gmail.com) and Marie-Claire Wangari (mcwangari.wm@gmail.com)

• Mission:

The Pandemic Working Group is a newly re-activated working group since January 2022 from the ad-hoc “COVID-19 working group”, created at the beginning of this pandemic. It was re-started at the height of the Omicron wave, to offer a space for junior doctors around the world to share their experiences from their respective countries and to keep ourselves informed about realities that are facing each other. The current aim of the working group is to review developments in the public health arena on matters pertaining to health emergencies of concern e.g. COVID-19 and monkeypox and appraise solutions being tabled with an aim to add the voice of junior doctors worldwide in these efforts.

• Publications:
  ○ 2022 JDN Newsletter: Working Group overview
  ○ Currently coordinating the review of the 2017 WMA Policy on Epidemics and Pandemics

• Activities participated in:
  • Advocacy Campaigns: In May 2023 we shared junior doctors stories from the frontlines on their experience working during the COVID-19 pandemic
  • Representing Junior Doctors in High Level Meetings e.g. the WHO Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB) and the WHO International Health Regulation (IHR) meetings

Medical Ethics Working Group 

Leads: Shiv Joshi (drshivjoshi93@gmail.com) and Jihoo Lee (sarah.jihoo.lees@gmail.com)

• Objectives:
  • The Medical Ethics Working Group aims to increase engagement of junior doctors in the topic medical ethics, policy, research and professional exchange.
  • The Medical Ethics working group participates in internal and external meetings on Medical Ethics
  • Members of the working group also have an opportunity to participate in drafting, reviewing, and contributing to WMA policies and Journal Publications on medical ethics.

Medical Exchange, Education and International Mobility Working Group 

Leads: Merlinda Shazellenne (dr.merlinda@gmail.com) and Balkiss Abdelmoula (abdelmoula.balkiss@gmail.com)

• Mission:

The Working Group serves as a platform for junior doctors to engage, learn, and collaborate in the spheres of medical education, exchange and mobility. With a focus on knowledge-sharing and advocacy, our purpose is to foster junior doctors’ engagement towards the advancement of medical education and to empower them to drive positive change in their careers and in healthcare systems worldwide.

• Objectives:
  • Explore avenues to partner with health institutions that encourage medical exchange and international mobility,
  • Provide guidance for junior doctors pursuing international mobility and/or global health careers,
  • Advocate for junior doctors’ involvement in shaping and monitoring medical education guidelines,
  • Elevate the voice of junior doctors in critical healthcare discussions such as the one on medical workforce and empower their role in the policy-making processes,
  • Enhance the quality of postgraduate medical education through research initiatives and best practices sharing.

• Activities:
  • Revision of the WMA Resolution on Medical Workforce, 2022-2023 (adopted during the WMA general assembly, October 2023)
  • Junior Doctors representation during the JDN-IFMSA co-hosted WHA side event on Youth Engagement, May 2023
  • Junior Doctors representation at the WHO Youth Hub 2023-2024
  • Revision of the Postgraduate Medical Education WFME Global Standards
  • Organizing Webinars to guide Junior Doctors in their careers:
    • Careers in Global Health (Junior Consultants Edition), February 2023
    • Navigating career pathway in an international organization, November 2022
    • Doctors’ Well-being, March 2021
  • Organizing Webinars on new thematics in intersection with the WG thematic areas such as the one on Planetary Health in Medical Education, September 2023
  • Organizing thematic sessions on Medical Education during JDN bi-annual meetings, such as the one on:
    • Country presentation session on the Medical Workforce, October 2023
    • Maximizing Junior Doctors’ Lifelong Learning Journey, October 2022

• Publications:
  • Special Edition on Medical Education and Medical Ethics, September 2023
  • Contributing to the JDN newsletter:
    • Responding to the worst natural disaster in recent history, May 2023
    • WHA75 – WMA Intervention on Human Resource for Health, November 2022
    • Different articles on the COVID-19 Pandemics, JDN newsletter October 2021
  • Special Edition on Medical Education, June 2021

Planetary Health Working Group 

Leads: Lekha Rathod ( ) and Laura Jung (laurajung.gh@gmail.com)

• Mission:

The Planetary Health Working Group aims to increase engagement of junior doctors at the intersection of human health and the environment, taking a holistic approach which considers the climate crisis, global environmental changes and health equity.
The working group succeeds and expands previous work done by the Climate Change and Health Working group.

Description of the relevance of the issue for Junior Doctors:
The group brings together health professionals and emphasizes their unique perspective on Planetary Health. Doctors are among the first to see the health impacts of environmental degradation and can develop a strong political voice to influence change. Additionally, youth have the unique position of great legitimacy when speaking about the long term impacts of human activity on the environment given that they will experience the most serious of those impacts within their lifetime.

The JDN has a long track record of engagement and of advocacy, both within the WMA and with external organizations on the topic of climate change and health.

• Objectives:
  • Create a space where junior doctors with interest in environment and health can meet, discuss, and collaborate on projects
  • Provide a junior doctor perspective on WMA policies that have to do with planetary health and mobilize the WMA to take stronger stances on these issues; Engage JDN members around global policy-making meetings related to environment and health such as the UNFCCC, COPs, and WHO
  • Facilitate cooperation between junior doctors wishing to contribute to research or to share new ideas/experiences from the field
  • Extend opportunities arising from WMA collaborations with external stakeholders to JDN members
  • Members of the working group also have an opportunity to participate in drafting, reviewing and contributing to WMA policies and Journal Publications

• Activities:
  • Participation and contribution in activities of the Global Climate and Health Alliance
  • Representing junior doctors in activities of the UNFCCC and WHO
    • UNFCCC COP27
    • UNFCCC SB58
    • WHA75

• Notable work:
  • Submission of a WMA policy on Air Pollution (2023)
  • Increasing engagement and representation of junior doctors in the WMA’s activities in the Environmental Caucus

Global Surgery Working Group

Leads: Ramitha Eshan Ruwanpathirana (oakflute@gmail.com) and Shravan Dave (srdave59@gmail.com)

• Mission:

The Global Surgery Working Group aims to promote equitable surgical and anesthetic care which aligns itself with the global Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3. This group aims to increase awareness of global surgery and anesthesia, while inspiring global participation among medical students and surgical health professionals towards achieving equitable surgical and anesthetic care worldwide.

• Objectives:
  • To promote awareness of the need for education, advocacy, and research to achieve health impartiality for all communities in need of quality surgical and anesthesia care globally.
  • To inspire participation and engagement of present and prospective surgeons and/or public health workers toward the achievement of these goals.
  • To increase awareness and seek alignment with the “WMA Statement on essential surgical care as a part of access to healthcare”.
  • Create and foster opportunities for mentorship and career development.
  • Create and foster opportunities for research and collaborative data analysis.

• Activities:
  • Global Surgery Awareness Campaigns (Advocacy).
  • Educational Webinars and workshops by leaders in Global Surgery.
  • Collaboration with other Global Surgery associations (Incision, International Association of Student Surgical Societies, Academic Association of Global Surgery, G4)

Past / Completed Working Groups

Note: Small Working Groups completed the respective tasks, and the WMA/JDN policy was adopted.

• JDN 10th Anniversary
• Ethics Surrounding Medical Care for Psychiatric Patients
• Postgraduate Medical Exchanges
• Working Conditions
• Trade and health
• Strategic planning
• Elections procedures
• Social Media
• Post-graduate medical education
• Doctors’ Health and Wellbeing
• Climate Change and Health Working Group
• WHO related activities working group
• Global Health Training and its Implications Working Group
• Doctors’ Health and Wellbeing Working Group