Medical Elective

Blog, Elective Reports, Medical Elective, Tourism

Coronavirus (COVID-19)

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Coronavirus (COVID-19)

The coronavirus has raised concerns worldwide, “As of 9am on 8 March 2020, 23,513 people have been tested in the UK, of which 23,240 were confirmed negative and 273 were confirmed as positive. Two patients who tested positive for COVID-19 have died.” according to www.gov.uk. 2 cases have been confirmed in Nigeria, the first case was a patient who travelled from Milan Italy to Lagos Nigerian. The second patient was identified as someone who had been in contact with the first patient, both cases are clinically stable. Sources: BBC, The Guardian and Nasdaq.

What is Nigeria doing?

  • Screening at international airports
  • Public health education on how to prevent catching and spreading the virus
  • Strict isolation of those who have been in contact with virus
  • Contact tracing
  • Reporting cases
  • Hospitals are following the WHO protocol and constantly communicating with the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC)

Due to the dynamic nature of the situation, it is difficult for us to provide you with specific advice. For those going to Nigeria (or elsewhere) for a medical placement, there are some questions you should ask yourself:

  • What happens if there is an outbreak in Nigeria (or other host country)?
  • What happens if the UK places restrictions on flights to or from Nigeria (or other host country)?
  • What happens if you become unwell with symptoms of coronavirus while at home or in Nigeria (or other host country)?

It is important to be in regular contact with your medical school before travelling to Nigeria (or other host country) so you are fully aware of any advice updates or changes in regulations. We recommend you have adequate health insurance, travel insurance (which may cover cancelled flights or have an allowance for flexibility) and a detailed plan for repatriation if it were necessary.

Although there is always more that can be done in these situations, let us remember the successful eradication of Ebola by Nigeria a few years ago.

For more information about the outbreak, travel and how to stay safe, visit:

Public Health England website: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-information-for-the-public, https://www.gov.uk/government/topical-events/coronavirus-covid-19-uk-government-response and https://www.gov.uk/guidance/travel-advice-novel-coronavirus

Travel Health Pro website: https://travelhealthpro.org.uk/news/499/novel-coronavirus-covid-19-general-advice-for-travellers

The NHS website: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/

MGN Image from https://www.cbs7.com/content/news/Coronavirus-COVID-19-What-you-need-to-know-568412081.html

Blog, Elective Reports, Medical Elective

Successful Separation of Conjoined twins at University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Nigeria

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Successful Separation of Conjoined twins at University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Nigeria

A team of UATH doctors on Tuesday successfully separated a set of conjoined twins at University of Abuja Teaching Hospital Gwagwalada. Dr Olori Samson, one of the surgeons who carried out the operation, said the parents visited the hospital on June 11 following a referral from another hospital.

 “On their arrival at our facility on June 11, 2018, having been referred from St. Mary Catholic Hospital, Gwagwalada where they were delivered through a Caesarean section, there were different hurdles. But the first hurdle was not on the surgery day but during the pre-surgery days. That is, making sure the babies were kept alive, which we delicately addressed.

“The other hurdles were anticipated based on our findings because after the initial clinical assessments, there were several CT scan investigations to determine the organs that were joined. So, we discovered their livers were joined. We had five sessions of all the teams coming together to plan and determine the best approach. We had anticipated the bleeding that would take place because the liver is one organ that you can’t really tie. So, the hospital management provided some modern gadgets we deployed to make sure the surgery went well. It did go well as we contained the surgery of about five hours. With what we had available to us, we hadn’t any fear that we would succeed in getting to the root of separating these babies,” Mr Samson said.

 Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Friday, the Chief Medical Director (CMD) of UATH, Bisallah Ekele, said the babies are in good condition. “As we speak, today (Friday) is the fourth-day post-surgery. The babies are stable and in good conditions. We took a decision as to when the operation would be done considering the fitness of the babies and on 29th October, we went to theatre and after four and half hours, the corrective surgery was done,” he said.

He said the surgery was carried out by two teams of paediatric surgeons, a team of plastic surgeons, two teams of anaesthetics, and specialist nurses.

The father of the twins, Ferdinand Ozube, said he is grateful for the assistance and care rendered to his family by the Hospital in its trying moment. He said he had heard about and watched conjoined twins on television but never thought he would have them. 

Medical Elective

Recommendations for Undergraduate Medical Electives

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Recommendations for Undergraduate Medical Electives

A medical elective is an amazing opportunity for all medical students, adequate time should be given for preparation to ensure your elective is enjoyable, educational and safe. The Medical Education Journal published a useful article titled ‘Recommendations for undergraduate medical electives: a UK consensus statement’. It details important considerations for all medical students embarking on a medical elective. We have listed the recommendations consolidated by the 30 participating UK medical schools. We strongly advise reading the full article and we encourage medical students to contact responsible individuals within their medical school to receive clarification on these recommendations.

Click to read more: Recommendations for undergraduate medical electives

Medical Elective

Staying Safe – Vaccinations & Antimalarials

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Most medical schools or hospitals have clear guidelines on the vaccinations they expect their students or employees to have received. Therefore I would advise you to look at the guidelines of the medical school/hospital/other medical environment you belong to and those of your desired elective location.

I’d advise the following vaccinations: Cholera, Diphtheria, Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Meningococcal Meningitis, Poliomyelitis, Rabies, Tetanus, Typhoid, Yellow Fever (Yellow Fever certificate is required at the airport and will need to be shown at passport control)

There are a variety of anti-malarials available, some more specific for Nigeria, its important you receive advice from a doctor or pharmacist before making a purchase. Make sure you are fully aware of the course for the specific antimalarial you have chosen, side effects and drug interactions if you are taking other medication.

Once you know what antimalarial you would like to buy consider buying the generic medication rather than the brand name – this will save you money! You can also calculate the exact number of tablets you need (included before and after travel needs) so you won’t have left over medication.

It may also be helpful for you to purchase some anti-emetics, anti-diarrhoeal, simple analgesia (such as paracetamol) and antihistamines. Getting diarrhoea within the first few days of arriving in Nigeria because your GI system is getting used to the pepper, leaf soups and heat is not the best welcome gift!!

Other resources (mostly relevant to the UK, so please look for the equivalent for your country):

If you have any medical or mental health conditions, seek medical advice from your local doctor before making any definitive plans or payments towards your Nigerian elective.

All medications should be purchased after a medical consultation and with a prescription. All medications should be used as prescribed by your medical practitioner.

Medical Elective

How to Raise Money For A Medical Placement?

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How to Raise Money For A Medical Placement?

As a student doctor (and potential student doctor) you have developed skills and acquired knowledge that can benefit many people around you, you do not have to travel to the other side of the globe to have a positive impact! It is amazing the opportunities you have as student doctors to support the health of our local community and other communities around the world. A medical elective placement is part of almost all medical degrees around the world, and once you have found what you would like to spend your time doing, the next step is to source some funding!

How are you going to raise the money for this!?

Here are a few suggestions:

1.       Search for grants, bursaries (and low-interest loans) offered by your medical school, college, university, local authority, charities, businesses, etc.

2.       Go Fund Me – although, to really get people (and strangers) to part with their hard earned money, you really need to:

a.       Clearly layout the purpose of your fundraising and show a breakdown of your costs

b.      Justify why you are deserving of their donation.

c.       Explain how this experience will truly benefit not just yourself but the community you are going to help.

d.      Demonstrate your own personal efforts to raising money i.e. part-time work, etc.

e.      Consider, the evidence will you be able to share with your supporters, i.e. a written report, weekly blog post, pictures and videos, etc. See this as a ‘thank you’ for their support.

3.       Part-time work for several weeks/months.

4.       Create an eBay account an sell unwanted items and new products.

5.       Auction or sell you gifts/talents/skills with in your community (i.e. family, university, church, etc); i.e. put on a small talent show; offer to baby sit, do household chores; cake sales, car boot sales, etc. for an hourly wage.

 

These are just a few of our suggestions; please help others out by commenting in the comment box below if you have any other ideas too! If you have instructions or a secret formula, even better! Lol

Photo Credit: PhotoPin

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