PAST MANSAG MEDICAL MISSIONS
MANSAG has a track record of carrying out successful medical mission work in Nigeria over the years.
Highlighted below are some of the more recent trips undertaken by MANSAG members. The idea of the medical missions is to work in partnership with health facilities in Nigeria and contribute to the efforts of those in Nigeria in the spirit of collaboration and shared expertise.
There was an MOU between the Federal Ministry of Health, The Nigerian National Volunteer Service, MANSAG and ANPA on cooperation in the health sector, dated September 2010 which was in place for 5 years.
This detailed the intention to share information and expertise in areas like health education, training, public health and professional regulations. The facilitation and part financing of programmes were promised in exchange for the participation of medical professionals from the diaspora in the various programmes.
2 further MOUs with specific organisations followed in 2011:
MOU between Bowen University Teaching Hospital, Ogbomosho (BUTHO) and MANSAG for a 3-5 year capacity building programme
MOU between the Federal Medical Centre in Abeokuta and MANSAG for a 3-5 year capacity building programme
2011
The training week / medical mission to BUTHO took place on 28th May 2011 – 4th June 2011
Activities included:
- BLS training
- Assisting in obstetric outpatient clinics
- Obstetric life support training
- Assisting in the medical outpatient clinics (cardiology opinion)
- Clinical governance and quality measures lecture
- Mini ATLS training
- Assisting in the gynaecology outpatient clinics
- Clinical oncology lecture
- ECG training – nurses trained in recording ECGs utilising a brand new unused machine in the hospital
- ECG interpretation workshop
2015
The training week was held on 8th June – 13th June 2015 at the University of Abuja Teaching hospital (UATH)
- Activities included:
- Surgical and Ophthalmology teaching
- O&G teaching
- Trauma workshop
- IT in healthcare delivery workshop
- Infection control workshop
- Research Methodology and writing of scientific papers workshop
- BLS training
2016
The training week took place from 22nd February – 26th Feb 2016 in the Federal Medical Centre in Abeokuta
- Activities included:
- Writing your CV workshop
- Medical ethics workshop
- Lectures on many topics within ENT, Paediatrics and Nephrology, Transplantation and Anaesthesia done in parallel sessions
- BLS training – adult and paediatrics
- ALS training – adult and paediatrics
- Basic trauma life support – adult and paediatrics
- Infection workshop
By all accounts, these training weeks were met with enthusiasm and were very well received and attended and gave much fulfilment to the MANSAG personnel who were involved. As we look to future missions/training weeks, we must think of more sustainable ways to carry out these trips. Medical missions/training weeks rank highly in the desired activities of MANSAG members as we want to ‘give back’ in any way we can.