European Somali Medical Conference 2025
Scandic Park, Helsinki, Finland
Saturday, 16.08.2025

08:00 – 09:00 - Breakfast and Registration

09:00 – 09:10
Opening and Introduction
Moderator: Abdirisak Ahmed MD DDS PhD
Neurosurgery resident, Finland

09:10 – 10:30
Session 1: Building Bridges: Unified Efforts of Somali Medical Associations in the Diaspora
Moderator: Najma Yusuf MD
Emergency Medicine resident, Finland

• 09:10 – 09:20
  Finnish Somali Medical Association
  Mohamed Ahmed MD
  General Doctor, Finland
  Vice-President, Finnish Somali Medical Association

• 09:20 – 10:20
  Panel Discussion

  • Panelists:

    • Khaliif Awad MD, Orthopedic and traumatology resident
    Kymeenlaakso Central Hospital, Finland
    President, Finnish Somali Medical Association

    • Selma Ibrahim MD, Pediatric specialist
    President, Swedish Somali Medical Association

    • Warsan Ismail MD, Gastrointestinal surgery resident
    Stavanger University Hospital, Norway
    Vice-President, Norwegian Somali Medical Association

    • Roda Abdulkadir MD, Cardiology resident
    Odense University Hospital, Denmark
    President, Danish Somali Doctors Association

    • Zakariye Ashkir MD PhD, Cardiology resident
    Royal Brompton Hospital, United Kingdom
    President, British Somali Medical Association

    • Mohamed Abdi MD, Radiation Oncologist
    Shenandoah Medical Center, Iowa, United States
    Vice-President, Somali American Medical Association

    • Mahamud Abdirahman MD, Cardiothoracic surgery resident
    Essen University Hospital, Germany
    President, German Somali Medical Association

• 10:20 – 10:30
  Introducing the European Somali Medical Collaboration
  Suban Mohamood, MD, MPH
  Public Health Medicine Resident, Norway / Researcher, Harvard
  President, Somali-Norwegian Medical Association

10:30 – 11:15 - Coffee Break

11:15 – 13:00
Session 2: Healthcare on the Horn of Africa

• 11:15 – 11:40
  IUnderstanding Somalia’s Healthcare: Before and After the Civil War
  Prof. Khalif Bile MD PhD, Gastroenterology Specialist
  Somali-Swedish Researchers' Association, Sweden

• 11:40 – 12:05
  Somalia’s Healthcare: Current Reality and Future Vision
  Guled Abdijaliil Ali MD, Nephrology Specialist
  Director General, Ministry of Health & Human Services, Federal Government of Somalia

• 12:05 – 12:25
  What has the MIDA FINNSOM Project Accomplished in Somalia?
  Saara Parkkali, MIDA FINNSOM Coordinator, IOM Finland

• 12:25 – 12:50
  The Silent Casualty: How Broken Public Systems Magnify Health Crises in Post-Conflict States
  Deqo Mohamed MD, Obstetrics and Gynecology Specialist
  Dr. Hawa Abdi Women's Hospital, Burco, Somaliland. 

• 12:50 – 13:15
  Scalpel and Vision: Advancing Surgery in Somalia Against the Odds
  Mohamud Aden MD, Gastrointestinal Surgery Specialist
  Somali European Hospital, Garowe

13:15 – 14:45 - Lunch and Salah

14:45 – 15:45
Panel Discussion: Returning to Serve – Diaspora Impact in Somali Hospitals, Universities, and Health Systems
Moderator: Dr. Faysal Hussein, MD
Specialist in Acute and Trauma Surgery, Sweden

Panelists:

• • Najma Abdirahman – Midwife, Demartino Public Hospital, Mogadishu, Somalia.

  • Prof. Mulki Mölsä, MD – Research Technical Advisor, Somali National University, Mogadishu, Somalia.

  • Farhia Mohamed, MD – Obstetrics and Gynecology Resident, Kymeenlaakso Central Hospital, Kotka, Finland.

  • Mohamud Aden, MD – Gastrointestinal Surgery Specialist, Somali European Hospital, Garowe, Somalia.

  • Prof. Khalif Bile, MD – Gastroenterology Specialist, Somali-Swedish Researchers' Association, Stockholm, Sweden.

15:45 – 16:15 - Coffee Break

16:15 – 17:15
Session 3: Health in the Somali Diaspora

Moderator: 

• 16:15 – 16:40
  Vaccination Uptake in Somalis: Evidence-Based Review
  Idil Hussein. PhD, Public Health Epidemiologist
  Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Finland

•  

17:05 – 17:15 - Closing Remarks and Event Conclusion

19:00 -  Dinner