Strategic analysis of the obstetric and gynaecological internship in Sudan

Background: The high expectations of the increasingly questioning society lays a great burden on the first line treating doctors in Sudan. This is particularly true in the obstetrics and gynaecology departments. The impact of training of the house-officer in surgical departments was not studied before in Sudan.The aim: To evaluate the gains in knowledge and skills of house-officers in the obstetrics and gynaecology departments as reflected by their activities and their opinions.Methodology: A prospective cohort carried in the period from May 2011 through June 2011. The data was collected from 200 house-officers. Their activities and duties as formulated by their seniors and supervisors and gains in knowledge and skills were noted.Results: All house-officers participated actively in the clinical diagnosis (history, physical examination and relevant investigations) and management of cases of antepartum and postpartum haemorrhages. Of them 186(93%) had duties not more than twice a week. However, 121(60.5%) shared training opportunities in units having seven or less peers. Also, 109(54.5%) had regular seminars and tutorials. In practice, 165(82.5%) performed evacuations, 158(79%) participated in normal deliveries, and 110(55%) were assisted in performing caesarean sections.Conclusion: The overall performance of house-officers in the department of obstetrics and gynaecology in Sudan is good. However, standards of training need to revisited to fill gabs in training if these young doctors are to be dispatched to rural hospital immediately after the internshipperiod.Key words: Internship, preregistration medical graduates duties, house-officers, obstetrics and gynaecology, medical education, and medical responsibility

Strategic analysis of the surgical internship in Sudan

Background: The internship period is internationally recognized the prerequisite official essential training period for the medical graduates to get registered in the local licensing body; in Sudan being the Sudan Medical Council. The evaluation of this important period was not studied before in Sudan.Objectives: To evaluate the performance of house-officers as reflected by their activities and opinions of their supervisors.Methodology: A prospective qualitative study in the period May 2011 through June 2011. The data was collected from 246 house-officers. Their activities, duties as formulated by their seniors and supervisors together with the relevant aspects of the working environment and their aspirationswere noted.Results: A total of 106 (53%) were trained in surgical units having seven or less peers. 118(59%) have worked in surgical units under supervision of surgical registrars and consultants. 157 (78.5%) had duties once or more/week. 129 (64.5%) house-surgeons had regular seminars and tutorials. 163 (81.5%) gained experience in wound suturing. 177 (88.5%) house-surgeons were exposed to clinical diagnoses and management of cases of acute abdomen but, 134 (67%) were able to perform various numbers of appendicectomies. 88(44%) of house-officers had a chance to open or close a vertical midline laparotomy wounds and 140 (70%) had chance to apply a plaster of ParisConclusion: The overall performance of house-surgeons in Sudan as reflected by their activities and opinions is good. However, protocols and guidelines of practice, structure of the training should be made clear before starting the surgical internship

Total phenol, flavonoid, individual phenolic acid contents, and antioxidant and cytotoxic activities of methanol extracts from Ficus cordata ssp. salicifolia

ABSTRACT This study aimed to evaluate the total phenol, flavonoid, and individual phenolic acid contents, and the antioxidant and cytotoxic activities of methanol extracts from Ficus cordata ssp. salicifolia. Spectrophotometry and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) were used for chemical analyses, and 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay was conducted to determine the antioxidant activity. The cytotoxic activity was assessed against MCF7 (human breast adenocarcinoma), A2780 (human ovary adenocarcinoma), HT29 (human colon adenocarcinoma), and MRC5 (normal human fetal lung fibroblast) using the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. The total content of phenols, flavonoids, and antioxidant activity of the studied dry leaf, stem bark, twig, and fruit extracts were between 13.14 and 22.94 mg GAEg-1 DW, 8.03 and 12.72 mg QEg-1 DW, and 75.59% and 83.96%, respectively. Ten individual phenolic acids were quantified in the studied plant parts. The prominent phenolic acid was p-hydroxybenzoic acid, followed by vanillic acid. Methanolic fruit extracts exhibited promising cytotoxic activity against MCF7 (IC50: 21.11 g mL-1). Additionally, A2780 cell lines responded very well to all the extracts, with an IC50 from 8.16–13.72 g mL-1, except for the fruit extract, which was 47.39 g mL-1. The leaf extract showed significant cytotoxicity against HT29 cell lines, with an IC50 of 8.81 g mL-1. All extracts showed IC50 values ranging from 24.68 to 56.15 g mL-1 on normal cells. Further examination of the plant parts in this study could identify compounds accounting for the observed antioxidant and cytotoxic activities and might represent potential novel anticancer drugs.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author