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 Health Volunteers Overseas (HVO) and the American Society of Hematology (ASH) are pleased to announce the establishment of the first HVO hematology training program, at Mulago Hospital located in Kampala, Uganda. Mulago Hospital is a 1500-bed facility that serves as Uganda's national referral, teaching, and research hospital and is affiliated with Makerere University. The overall goal of this program is to improve the hematology training of clinicians, laboratory technicians, technologists, and students.

ASH member Melody Cunningham, MD, will serve as the program director for this site. "Hematology is not a well-developed discipline throughout the country," stated Dr. Cunningham. "The staff seeking further training in hematology are young, fresh, and genuinely want to advance their programs, both for improved clinical care and academic accomplishment, but also to create a sustainable program that can be passed down."

HVO will send up to four volunteers a year to fulfill two- to four-week assignments. Volunteers should be ASH members who are board certified/eligible in hematology or hematology/oncology and pediatric or adult hematologists in clinical practice or laboratory research.

Volunteers will provide didactic and hands-on training in both the clinical and laboratory aspects of hematology to undergraduate medical and laboratory students, postgraduates, fellows, and staff. Volunteers will also assist in evaluating postgraduate fellow projects and aid in improving communication between the lab staff and clinicians.

The American Society of Hematology is the world's largest professional society concerned with the treatment of blood disorders. Since its initial meeting in 1958, ASH has been dedicated to furthering the understanding, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disorders affecting the blood, bone marrow, and the immunologic, hemostatic, and vascular systems, by promoting research, clinical care, education, training, and advocacy in hematology. ASH has more than 15,000 members, including more than 3,500 international members from across the globe.

A private, nonprofit membership organization, Health Volunteers Overseas was founded in 1986 to improve global health through education. HVO designs and implements clinical education programs in child health, primary care, trauma and rehabilitation, essential surgical care, oral health, hematology, infectious disease, nursing education, burn management, and wound care. In more than 25 resource-poor nations, volunteers train, mentor, and provide critical professional support to health care providers who care for the neediest populations in the most difficult of circumstances. HVO's hematology training programs are sponsored by the American Society of Hematology. To learn more about volunteering with HVO, visit the Web site (http://www.hvousa.org) or contact the HVO Program Department at (202) 296-0928.

Finally UG has acquired an MRI machine, being the last country in East Africa to acquire one. The machine is at an expensive private Kampala Hospital.

I'm wondering how the local man can acquire 650,000/- just to go for a scan hmmmmm.

http://newvision.co.ug/D/8/13/626324

Thanks for the posting Peregrine.  I for one I'm very happy that this development has come about and I'm definitely rooting for the co-founders at this institute. From the research on them - they are definitely going about setting this institution up in a professional way. Yes it is costly to your everyday person, however, when you way this up with the revenue lost out to seeking healthcare external to Uganda for lack of equipment or resources when patients are flown out of the country to have this done abroad, then this is definitely a step in the right direction.  I am also aware that they are getting highly skilled individuals in place wh will be operating such systems as the MRI unit, perhaps the government can support such ventures by offering subsidies for those who can least afford this service as a way of redressing the imbalance...  Meanwhile - to the staff and founders of Kampala Hospital - I say congratulations and way to go! 

 Peregrine - I got side-tracked whilst posting the above post and got cut off.

One or two things I wanted to clarify on my previous posting: MRI access even here in a country which has free healthcare is not a first line diagnostic route due to the expense involved.  Through the referral process involved, one may have to wait months to have an MRI unless they opt to go down the private route of paying for it out of their own pockets.  This may set them back £200-500+ and would be dependant on the area of the body which is covered by the imaging process.  As a result, an increasing trade in what is termed "health tourism" has sprung up whereby persons from such countries as here opt to head abroad where its cheaper to get such tests done cheaply. 

No doubt with proper planning in some of these countries that have benefited from health tourists like India, Thailand and Romania, they have invested back into their health system so as to benefit the local population.  It leaves to be seen if such institutions like Kampala Hospital can avoid the nepotic tendancies which plague Uganda in being able to give back something however little into the community. It certainly is not humane to have an elite group of individuals affording the luxurious lifestyles both within and external to the country at the expense of so many; and is purely not good for the long term of any society.