010 RAWCS Rover AUG 2016 | Page 5

Building a Healthy Congo , Democratic Republic of CONGO Rotary E-Club of Greater Sydney D9685 - RAWCS project 47-2015 / 16 Emergency medicine education in the D . R . Congo

Despite a clear need for , and growing interest in , developing emergency medicine in the DRC , the discipline does not exist as a specialty and there is currently no postgraduate training program for doctors and nurses . There is no functional public pre-hospital system of ambulances and paramedics , although some private hospitals provide an ambulance service . Basic and advanced life support are not a standard part of medical training . Few Congolese medical institutions have the capacity to train recognized specialists of any kind , and most doctors must seek this outside the country . The Université Protestante au Congo ( UPC ) is currently the only university in Congo able to train family medicine specialists .
After an initial assessment of the potential to deliver emergency medicine education through the UPC infrastructure last year , we returned this year to develop the initiative further . We started our six-week trip in Cape Town at the International Conference on Emergency Medicine where members of UPC were brought together with representatives from the African Federation for Emergency Medicine and the WHO Emergency , Trauma and Acute Care program amongst others , to help shape the project .
Above : Hands-on emergency care practice in Kimpese .
Thereafter , we travelled to deliver a 3- day emergency medicine training course at five locations across the country where UPC have clinical sites for their family medicine trainees .
The program included didactic and practical modules on resuscitation , paediatric rehydration , trauma management , ECG interpretation and intravenous access . Over 220 healthcare providers participated and received certificates of attendance as well as a USB each containing the training material in electronic form .
Dr Vera Sistenich , Lucy Hobgood-Brown .
5
Above : Celebrations after completion of the course in Vanga .
Paul Tunn Memorial Dental Project , PAPUA NEW GUINEA Rotary Club of GREENHILLS MAITLAND D9670 - RAWCS project 51-2015 / 16

Paul Tunn Memorial Dental Project

PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Paul Tunn Memorial Dental Project is a project that will bring dental care and education to a remote population in the Jiwaka province in the central highlands of Papua New Guinea . It will provide a dental service and education to some 40,000 children who are at present without such care and have a high need for better health . Over 80 % of children have been identified to be in a oral health high risk category .
Using WHO standards and goals , a Rotarian Vocational Training Team of five dentists have committed to provide their services for the project with a focus on preventative health . The project is collaboratively supported by Rotary teams from Greenhills Maitland and Nondugl - PNG as a result of a longstanding relationship of over 5 years between Rotary Club of Greenhills - Maitland and the people of the Jiwaka area .
https //: dentalproject . greenhillsrotary . org . au /