Virtual AGM Saturday November 13th on Zoom
Our AGM this year will once again be on ZOOM only and all members are invited to log in for a 14.00 start for the business section of the meeting. Members have already been sent the Agenda and the Zoom log-on details.
After the formal business section of the meeting we will have a series of talks describing examples of how medical care is being provided in remote, rural areas of Zambia, by two innovative and highly successful programmes, MEDICAL LICENTIATES and FLYSPEC. Any non-members who are interested in joining the ZOOM talk section of the meeting should email John Barnard, our Chairman to request a password and ID to join, John’s email address is john.barnard@btinternet.com . This section of the AGM will start at 14.30.
Here are the full details.
2.30 Innovative approaches to providing health care in remote rural areas
Zambia’s size and its widely dispersed population makes the provision of high level medical care very challenging. In this session we discuss two innovative and successful initiatives.
1. MEDICAL LICENTIATES
In 2002 Zambia introduced Medical Licentiates, with advanced clinical skills, including elective and emergency surgery, as a sustainable response to meet the healthcare needs of rural populations. They are trained to take over the management of health centres in rural areas, and they play a vital part in equipping the country for the enormous challenges the health sector faces, now and in the future.
The work of Medical Licentiates - Dr Petros Andreadis
Petros Andreadis is technical adviser and project manager for the Medical Licentiate training programme in Zambia, working with SolidarMed. He is also a regular invited lecturer at Cambridge University, teaching Global Health to Masters students.
Evaluating the effectiveness of the Licentiate programme - Dr Jakub Gajewski
Jakub Gajewski is a health sociologist and is the director of the research programme of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland Institute of Global Surgery. He recently published his research on lessons learned from the Medical Licentiate programme in Zambia.
2. FLYSPEC
FlySpec is the only flying medical service available in the most remote areas of Zambia. It provides free surgery and other services, mainly to to disabled people, especially children.
The work of FlySpec - Dr Alberto Gregori and Dr Patricia O’Connor
Alberto Gregori is an orthopaedic surgeon. He is a trustee of FlySpec and Chair Elect of World Orthopaedic Concern UK. He has been involved in Global Orthopaedics since working as a missionary surgeon in Zimbabwe in 1985. He visits Zambia regularly to carry out surgical camps and teaching, having first worked there with John Jellis in 1996.
Trish O’Connor is an Emergency Medicine Consultant and pilot. She set up and developed the first Zambian Trauma Management courses and these continue to be taught 25 years later. She continues to deliver shop floor teaching in acute care and other relevant topics.