War Doctors - In Conversation

Join War Doctors - In Conversation, 24 June, to hear stories from the doctors saving lives in the face of conflict and catastrophe.

Professor David Nott (Co-founder of David Nott Foundation) will be joined by Dr Goher Rahbour, Dr Rebekka Troller, and Dr Nicola Batrick (Q&A chair) to discuss surgery on the frontline, moral dilemmas, and the scars left by war.

Professor David Nott:

For the past 30 years David has taken unpaid leave to work for the aid agencies Médecins Sans Frontières, the International Committee of the Red Cross and Syria Relief. He has provided surgical treatment to patients in conflict and catastrophe zones in Bosnia, Afghanistan, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Chad, Darfur, Yemen, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, Iraq, Pakistan, Libya, Syria, Central African Republic, Palestine, Nepal and Ukraine.

In 2015 David established the David Nott Foundation with his wife Elly. The Foundation supports surgeons in developing their operating skills for war zones and austere environments and has now trained over 900 doctors through their bespoke Hostile Environment Surgical Training (HEST) course. In 2019, Picador published David’s bestselling memoir, War Doctor.

Dr Goher Rahbour:

Goher Rahbour is a Consultant Colorectal & General Surgeon. In June 2025, Goher undertook voluntary humanitarian surgery in Nasser Hospital, Gaza with Medical Aid for Palestinian’s (MAP) Emergency Medical Team for one month. He has also undertaken voluntary work with refugees in the Calais refugee 'Jungle', completed the Definitive Surgical Trauma Care in Cape Town, the Hostile Emergency Surgical Trauma course (David Nott Foundation), and enhanced his trauma experience at Charlotte Maxeke Hospital in Johannesburg. For over a decade, he has undertaken International Airplane Medical Repatriations. Goher completed his undergraduate years at St. Andrew's University and University of Manchester, research at St. Mark’s Hospital / Imperial College London, the London General Surgery registrar training programme, and a Royal College of Surgeons Fellowship.

Dr Rebekka Troller:

Rebekka Troller is an NHS Consultant in General and Colorectal Surgery. Born and trained in Switzerland, she moved to the UK in 2017 and completed training in and around London-area hospitals, including Royal Free, St. Mary's, Addenbrooke's (Cambridge), and St. Thomas', before taking a consultant role at Medway Maritime Hospital in Kent. She has completed missions with Médecins Sans Frontières in Cameroon and Haiti. Since 2019, she has served as faculty for the David Nott Foundation's Hostile Environment Surgical Training (HEST) course, helping train surgeons in conflict areas including Palestine, Ukraine, Iraq, Somaliland, Libya, Syria, Moldova, Turkey, and Yemen.

Dr Nicola Batrick:

Nicola works as the Medical Director (Clinical Governance & Product) at the David Nott Foundation. She has significant clinical experience in the delivery of major trauma care as a senior clinician in the NHS. She helped to develop and refine the major trauma service at St Mary’s major trauma centre (MTC) and for more than a decade she was the major trauma governance lead at the MTC and Director of the north west London trauma network.

Nicola has expertise in acute NHS Trust emergency preparedness including the clinical response to the July 7th London bombings and the Westminster Bridge terrorist attack. Throughout her Consultant career she was involved in education and training, both for acute Trust major incident responses and major trauma care. Nicola has publications in the field of major trauma and the use of virtual world environments to train for major incidents.

This event is organised by the David Nott Foundation, with support from the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. Tickets are free of charge.

Event Venue

King Khalid Building (Symposium Hall), Hill Square, Edinburgh, United Kingdom

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