Strengthening Global Disaster Rehabilitation: Highlights from the ISPRM Emergency Rehabilitation Committee Session

At the 19th ISPRM World Congress in Marrakesh, the Emergency Rehabilitation Committee (ERC) delivered one of its most comprehensive and impactful scientific sessions in recent years. As noted by the session’s speaker, this was “one of the best disaster rehabilitation scientific committee sessions in the last five years,” bringing together experts from 10 countries to share experiences and strategies for improving rehabilitation in crisis contexts .

The session explored a wide range of real-world emergencies, including the Morocco earthquake, the Pakistan earthquake, and the lessons learned from Nepal, while also highlighting the support provided by colleagues in Bangladesh. A segment of the session examined the role of the WHO Emergency Medical Teams (EMT) system and the importance of embedding rehabilitation early in disaster response frameworks .

In one striking example of the breadth of today’s challenges, the committee even ventured into the realm of space medicine, with a presentation on spacewalks and radiation risks — a reminder that rehabilitation considerations extend far beyond Earth’s surface .

Across all discussions, one message stood out clearly: rehabilitation must be strengthened both in times of peace and during disasters.

“Hopefully we are going to improve the services for patients with disability not in peace times but also during disaster — and this is a mission that all of us carry.”

The ERC closed with a shared commitment to carry these lessons across the globe, working collectively to ensure that people with disabilities receive timely, appropriate, and life-restoring rehabilitation care in every emergency. The session concluded with an invitation to continue the conversation and momentum at ISPRM 2026 in Vancouver.