Walt Johnson

Dr Walt Johnson is currently the Director of Strategic Partnerships for Mercy Ships. He is Professor of Neurosurgery and Public Health and was the Founding Director of the Center for Global Surgery at Loma Linda University in Loma Linda, California, USA.

From 2015-2019, he led the Emergency and Essential Surgical Care Programme at World Health Organization in Geneva, Switzerland, working to increase access to safe, timely and affordable surgical, obstetric, and anesthesia services to underserved populations through strengthening healthcare systems, training an adequate health workforce, developing appropriate health policy, and building strong partnerships, among many other tasks.

Dr Johnson completed his medical degree at Loma Linda University, followed by neurosurgical training at SUNY-Health Science Center at Brooklyn, and a cerebrovascular fellowship at UCLA. He was involved in academic neurosurgery until 2009, serving as the Vice-Chairman of Neurosurgery at Loma Linda University for over a decade.

Dr Johnson also holds master’s degrees in business administration and public health from Claremont Graduate University in California.

He lives in California and remains active in both global surgery and global neurosurgery.