global health
Curriculum Upgrade Comes to Laboratory
Medicine at the University of Sierra Leone
by Isatta Wurie, PhD, senior technical consultant; Professor Onike Rodrigues, deputy vice chancellor, University
of Sierra Leone; Esther Vitto, laboratory program support, Global Health; Mohamed Fofanah, associate specialist,
Administration and Finance, Global Health; and Palmira Mangae, associate specialist, Global Health
Sierra Leone faces a shortage of qualified
laboratory scientists capable of detecting
outbreaks and responding to public
health events. In July 2017, APHL, under
the leadership of the University of Sierra
Leone College of Medicine and Allied
Health Sciences (COMAHS), facilitated
a review and harmonization of the
laboratory science curricula to improve
the capacity, quality and number of
the country’s laboratory scientists. • Implement the single pre-medical
or access year proposed in a
previous curricula review exercise
Collaboration in Freetown • Improve students’ practical experience
The review was conducted in Freetown,
in collaboration with CDC Sierra Leone,
Ministry of Health and Sanitation, the
Pharmacy Board and Kings College
Partnership. The group discussed
ways to upgrade the 2014 curricula for
Diplomas, Pharmacy, Bachelors of Science
(BSc), Bachelors of Medicine (MBBS)
and Medical Laboratory courses to a
unified format. Objectives included: • Update the curricula to reflect
the current needs of the country
and global health lessons
• Draw up course-credit
“modular” curricula for the
basic and pre-clinical years
• Introduce general studies into
the pre-medical curricula
• Streamline curricula to include
only relevant materials
At the end of the five-day intensive,
all participating departments adopted
the proposed modular credit system.
A General Studies module—covering
communication and computer skills
among others—was introduced
to the Pre-Med and Year One BSc
Laboratory Science Course.
The updated curricula led some
departments, such as Basic Medical
Sciences and Community Medicine, to
downsize their course offerings. The
pure sciences, notably Chemistry
and Chemical Pathology, downsized
theoretical aspects but increased practice
sessions. There is still progress to be
made, especially in the quantification
of stocks for practical sessions.
Next Steps
The upgraded curricula must be validated
by the University Curriculum Committee
and other stakeholders, and approved
for implementation by the University
Senate. It is hoped that COMAHS will
have an approved, printed curricula
for the 2018-2019 academic year. n
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