Abstract

Injuries kill over 5 million people each year. Many lives could be saved by improvements in care of injury victims, both outside and inside hospital. Often, the improvements needed are low-cost and very feasible. There is a need for NGOs and the lay public more widely to advocate for such improvements and strong precedence for the effectiveness of such advocacy.

NGOs have played an important role in promoting road safety, but efforts by NGOs and the lay public to promote emergency and trauma care services have thus far been very limited, especially in low- and middle-income countries. To fill this need and thus to stimulate more effective advocacy for emergency and trauma care, the Global Alliance of NGOs for Road Safety and the World Health Organization have created a guideline named ‘Advocating for Emergency and Trauma Care: The Role of NGOs and the Lay Public’.

This document will provide NGOs and the lay public with advice on the most effective ways to promote improvements in emergency and trauma care services. It includes general guidance on best practices and examples of successful efforts from a range of countries and situations. The document is universally applicable to countries at all economic levels.