Bridging the disability inclusion gap: How health systems exclude one in six people, and what we can do about it
Date: Sun, Oct 12, 2025 – Sun, Oct 12, 2025
Time: 11:00 – 12:30
Venue: Forum 2, InterContinental Berlin Germany
Join ATscale at World Health Summit 2025 to bridge the disability inclusion gap
ATscale in partnership with the WHO, Special Olympics, CBM, Humanity & Inclusion (HI), and Sightsavers will be a hosting a session on:
- Session title: Bridging the disability inclusion gap: How health systems exclude 1 in 6 people, and what we can do about it
- Date: Sunday, October 12, 2025
- Time: 11:00 – 12:30 CEST (Berlin Time)
- Location (in-person): InterContinental Berlin, Forum 2
- Watch online: Captioning is available via livestream on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xiGD8zqcI0
Interactive session overview
The fight against major global health challenges—including Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) like cancer and diabetes, and communicable diseases like HIV, Tuberculosis, and depression—is failing to reach 1.3 billion persons with disabilities worldwide. This exclusion creates dangerous health gaps, such as up to 45% exclusion from diabetes treatment and 33% from cancer screening.
This session will invite global health leaders to discuss strategies for championing disability inclusion and building a truly equitable health system. ATscale will be taking part in the panel, highlighting the critical importance of integrating assistive technology into equitable health systems, which is fundamental to achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and SDG 3.
The discussion will feature a diverse panel of experts, including high-level representation from the partnering organizations, committed to driving global action on health equity for persons with disabilities. Speakers, moderator and panellists include:
- Katri Bertram
- Valentino Vergotine, Special Olympics Representative, South Africa
- Karen Reyes, MD MPH, ATscale, the Global Partnership for Assistive Technology
- Abayneh Gujo Desta, Executive Director, Federation of Ethiopian Associations of Persons with Disabilities (FEAPD), Ethiopia
- Jose Maria Viera Viera, Executive Director, International Disability Alliance (IDA), Vice chair, ATscale
- Dr Ebere Okereke, Chief Program Officer, Mohammed bin Zayed Foundation for Humanity
- Dr. Tania H. Rödiger-Vorwerk Rödiger-Vorwerk, Global Health, Resilience, Equality of Opportunity | Deputy Director General, Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Germany
- Darryl Barrett, Technical Lead (Disability), World Health Organization (WHO)
Find out more, including the full agenda and speaker bios, here
We look forward to collaborating with you on this critical step toward a healthier and more inclusive future.
