The vision of our International Obstetric Anesthesia Division (IOAD) is to provide expert teachers, clinicians and innovators to under-served global communities, delivering updates in obstetric anesthesia care and standardization of medical practices. Through extensive collaboration with our global partners, we hope to provide the highest standards of medical care and education while affording a rich cultural and educational experience for our residents and clinical staff. The core goals of the IOAD mirror that of the Johns Hopkins Hospital strategic plan comprising people, biomedical discovery, patient and family centered care, education, integration and performance.

People are at the very core of our international initiative, including Johns Hopkins Hospital intensively trained and expert staff, partners in our international communities and the global population we seek to serve. The Johns Hopkins Hospital experience is unique owing to the curated group of expert physicians and teachers who deliver outstanding medical care with compassion, empathy and professionalism. Coupled with our international colleagues, we strive to form a collaborative group to improve Obstetric and Regional Anesthesia care around the world.

The Johns Hopkins Obstetric and Regional Anesthesia Division currently operates a secure database comprising anesthesia data records of all patients utilizing our services. Our goal is to enable international colleagues to access and add to this database. This comprehensive data bank will facilitate research regarding cultural and geographical differences in obstetric anesthesia care plus obstacles physicians face in providing top care to global communities. This international archive will promote both local and international progress in obstetric and regional anesthesia care.

Patients and their families are the heart and soul of our global mission. Without an on-going need for global medical care and education, our international division would not exist. We strive to put patients at the fore-front of every thought and act, providing the best medical treatments and education. On every obstetric international trip, our goals include local community education about pain relief during labor, epidurals and anesthetic options for cesarean section. On every regional anesthesia international trip our goals include local community education about operative regional anesthesia and post-operative pain control options for surgery. We solicit feedback during every trip as to how to improve our community out-reach programs.

The IOARD educational mission is three pronged: first, to support faculty, staff and trainees in perioperative patient care and education program building in an international setting; second, to establish a teaching collaborative with international colleagues and third, provide education and out-reach programs to international communities. To accomplish the first goal, each member of the international mission will undergo extensive in-house training prior to travel. In addition, we will maintain a website and quarterly newsletter with on-going updates, relevant literature and training resources. In order to establish a teaching collaborative with our international colleagues, our goal is to provide and maintain a centralized source (via website) of literature, training resources, research projects, databases, and funding sources. This website will include on-going communications between the IOAD and any interested international party. As discussed in patient and family centered care above, our final goal is international community out-reach via education regarding obstetric and regional anesthesia.

The Johns Hopkins IOAD will integrate our efforts by maintaining a website including the following information: current clinical collaborations with brief descriptions, contact information, newsletters, training resources, global community teaching initiatives, international opportunities, research projects, and funding sources.

The goal of the IOAD is to provide a transparent financial plan and to create sustainable financial success. Financial support will be used to provide administrative support and travel support.