Image of John Gerard Meara

John G Meara, D.M.D., M.D.

Boston Children's Hospital Professor of Surgery in the Field of Pediatric Plastic Surgery, Boston Children's Hospital
Professor of Global Health and Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School
617-355-2313

John G. Meara, MD, DMD, MBA is the Director of the Program in Global Surgery and Social Change, and Professor of Surgery in the Department of Surgery at Harvard Medical School.  Dr. Meara serves as the Plastic Surgeon-in-Chief of the Department of Plastic & Oral Surgery at Boston Children's Hospital.   He was Co-Chair for the Lancet Commission on Global Surgery and was a commissioner on the Lancet Global Health Commission on High Quality Health Systems in the SDG Era, and the Lancet Oncology Commission.   He currently serves as a commissioner on the Lancet Commission on Diagnostics.  In 2008 he created the Paul Farmer Global Surgery Fellowship program. He is also interested in value-based health care and implementation science research, including time driven activity-based cost research and outcomes research.  Dr. Meara has led several ICHOM projects focusing on outcomes reporting and international benchmarking. 

Affiliations
Department of Plastic and Oral Surgery, Boston Children's Hospital

Contact Information
Harvard Medical School
Department of Global Health and Social Medicine
641 Huntington Avenue
Boston, Massachusetts 02115

Boston Children's Hospital
Department of Plastic and Oral Surgery

Assistant
Marshalee Bowens

Dr. Meara's interests and innovation activities lie in the areas of craniofacial anomalies, cleft lip and cleft palate, but he has a particular interest in augmenting the delivery of quality surgical and anesthesia care in low-resource settings through long term capacity building. He is involved in multiple global surgery projects looking at the burden of surgical disease, the surgical capacity and health systems building in low-resource environments, surgical education and the economic impact of untreated surgical disease. He is also interested in value based health care and implementation science research, including time driven activity based cost research and outcomes research. Dr. Meara has led several ICHOM projects focusing on outcomes reporting and international benchmarking. Since 2008, he has directed the Paul Farmer Global Surgery Fellowship program in collaboration with Partners In Health. Its purpose is to strengthen global surgical systems through a combination of research, advocacy, and implementation science as well as train leaders who will further promote surgical care, education, and research pertinent to global surgery.

Research Interests

The evolving role of surgery in the international public health agenda.
Authors: Authors: Citron I, Meara JG.
Cad Saude Publica
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Efficacy of Facilitated Capacity Building in Providing Cleft Lip and Palate Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.
Authors: Authors: Jenny HE, Massenburg BB, Saluja S, Meara JG, Shrime MG, Alonso N.
J Craniofac Surg
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A Standard Set of Outcome Measures for the Comprehensive Appraisal of Cleft Care.
Authors: Authors: Allori AC, Kelley T, Meara JG, Albert A, Bonanthaya K, Chapman K, Cunningham M, Daskalogiannakis J, de Gier H, Heggie AA, Hernandez C, Jackson O, Jones Y, Kangesu L, Koudstaal MJ, Kuchhal R, Lohmander A, Long RE, Magee L, Monson L, Rose E, Sitzman TJ, Taylor JA, Thorburn G, van Eeden S, Williams C, Wirthlin JO, Wong KW.
Cleft Palate Craniofac J
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The opioid epidemic: What can surgeons do about it?
Authors: Authors: Saluja S, Selzer D, Meara JG, Heneghan K, Daly JM.
Bull Am Coll Surg
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Latin America Indicator Research Coalition examines prehospital care using a trauma systems application
of LCoGS indicator 1.
Authors: Authors: Peck G, Blitzer D, Citron I, Dutton J, Foianini JE, Gracias V, Manzano R, Meara JG, Mehta D, Model Z, Morales C, NeMoyer R, Ordoñez C, Pino LF, Puyana JC, Rodas E, Schroeder ME, Sullivan T, Torres M, Truché P, Vega MP.
Bull Am Coll Surg
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Implementing World Health Assembly Resolution 68.15: National surgical, obstetric, and anesthesia strategic plan development--the Zambian experience.
Authors: Authors: Mukhopadhyay S, Lin Y, Mwaba P, Kachimba J, Makasa E, Lishimpi K, Silverstein A, Afshar S, Meara JG.
Bull Am Coll Surg
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Laparoscopic Versus Open Cholecystectomy: A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis at Rwanda Military Hospital.
Authors: Authors: Silverstein A, Costas-Chavarri A, Gakwaya MR, Lule J, Mukhopadhyay S, Meara JG, Shrime MG.
World J Surg
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Using global surgical indicators to improve trauma care in Latin America.
Authors: Authors: Peck G, Saluja S, Blitzer DN, Sarma D, Anderson GA, Rodas E, Foianini JE, Puyana JC, Meara J, Morales C, Ordonez C, Gracias V.
Bull Am Coll Surg
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Classification of Cleft Lip/Palate: Then and Now.
Authors: Authors: Allori AC, Mulliken JB, Meara JG, Shusterman S, Marcus JR.
Cleft Palate Craniofac J
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From blockchain technology to global health equity: can cryptocurrencies finance universal health coverage?
Authors: Authors: Till BM, Peters AW, Afshar S, Meara J.
BMJ Glob Health
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