By Our Reporter
The East African Development Bank (EADB) and the British Council in partnership with the Royal College of Physicians (London), has launched a medical training and fellowships program to train 600 cancer specialists in the next four years.
According to the Director General of the EADB Vivienne Yeda, the training will boost the medical fraternity’s capacity in fighting non-communicable diseases in particular, cancer and neurological disorders in East Africa.
“The ratio of doctor to population in the region is far below the UN standards. Through this program, we hope over the long term to equip doctors in district hospitals across the region with the skills to effectively and promptly diagnose cancer and neurological disorders and facilitate early interventions either at the point of contact or by referral for advanced medical care,” she said.
She added that the program was an additional investment in the growing list of interventions by the bank to boost skill and capacity to key sectors of the East African economy. EADB currently supports a scholarship program for teachers in the US as well as a capacity building program for East African public sector lawyers in the extractive industries.
“The East African Community (EAC) with a population of more than 135 million has great economic potential, but non-communicable diseases are a major threat to this region’s quest to achieve socio-economic development,” said Yeda.
In the first 3 years of the project, the program will conduct a series of East-Africa based residential 5-day training courses in neurology and oncology. These will be delivered by a mixed faculty from the UK and East Africa. They will be complemented by a two-year specialist academic and clinical training in the UK for a select number of high cadre doctors in these two disciplines.
The British Council Regional Director for Sub Sahara Africa, Mandy Johnson said the program will create opportunities for doctors within the region who aspire to specialize in the medical disciplines of oncology and neurology. Their training will bring much needed skills to the communities they serve.
“We are pleased that this partnership will lead to a rich exchange of skills, expertise and experience. We hope that the program will lead to better health for the people of East Africa,” she said.
At the same time the CEO of the Royal College of Physicians Ian Bullock, added that the program will aid in improving not only the skills of the doctors but also help in saving lives.
“I am extremely proud that we have this opportunity to use our expertise to support our colleagues in the East African region. This program is an excellent example of our institution’s aim to improve care for patients and to develop physicians throughout their career by increasing access to high quality postgraduate training,” he said.
The training comes at a time when the number of cancer cases worldwide is expected to surge by 75% during the next two decades according to WHO Cancer Research. Deaths from cancers have been on the increase in the East African region, with 50 Kenyans dying daily from various forms of cancer. The trend is the same across the region, with the main cause being associated with lack of treatment facilities and expertise for treatment, prevention and early detection.