Learning health professionalism at Makerere University: an exploratory study amongst undergraduate students

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Anecdotal evidence shows that unprofessional conduct is becoming a common occurrence amongst health workers in Uganda. The development of appropriate professional values, attitudes and behaviors is a continuum that starts when a student joins a health professional training institution and as such health professionals in training need to be exposed to the essence of professionalism. We sought to explore undergraduate health professions students' perceptions and experiences of learning professionalism as a preliminary step in addressing the problem of unprofessional conduct amongst health workers in Uganda.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Eight focus group discussions were conducted with 49 first to fifth year health professions undergraduate students of the 2008/2009 academic year at Makerere University College of Health Sciences. The focus group discussions were recorded and transcribed, and were analyzed using content analysis with emergent coding.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The difference in the way first and fifth year students of Makerere University College of Health Sciences conceptualized professionalism was suggestive of the decline in attitude that occurs during medical education. The formal curriculum was described as being inadequate while the hidden and informal curricula were found to play a critical role in learning professionalism. Students identified role models as being essential to the development of professionalism and emphasized the need for appropriate role modeling. In our setting, resource constraints present an important, additional challenge to learning universal standards of health professionalism. Furthermore, students described practices that reflect the cultural concept of communalism, which conflicts with the universally accepted standard of individual medical confidentiality. The students questioned the universal applicability of internationally accepted standards of professionalism.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The findings call for a review of the formal professionalism curriculum at Makerere University College of Health Sciences to make it more comprehensive and to meet the needs expressed by the students. Role models need capacity building in professionalism as health professionals and as educators. In our setting, resource constraints present an additional challenge to learning universal standards of health professionalism. There is need for further research and discourse on education in health professionalism in the Sub-Saharan context of resource constraints and cultural challenges.</p

Knowledge Management Research Using Grounded Theory Strategy: Applicability, Limitations and Ways Forward

Contains fulltext : 83319.pdf (publisher's version ) (Closed access)ICCIR 2010: 6th ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON COMPUTING AND ICT RESEARC

Diarrhea in children with plasmodium falciparum malaria: A case-control study on the prevalence and response to antimalarial treatment

The role of Plasmodium in the etiology of acute diarrhea in developing countries remains controversial, and gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms are inconsistently reported in malaria. In this observational case-control study, we investigated the prevalence and risk factors for GI symptoms in hospitalized malarious children aged 1 month to 5 years in northern Uganda. Children with a diagnosis of Plasmodium falciparum malaria were enrolled as cases, and feverish children in whom malaria was excluded were enrolled as controls. Among 451 malarious children, 46.1% had GI symptoms at admission. Compared with controls, the frequency of diarrhea (24.8% versus 11.2%, P < 0.001) and vomiting (35.5% versus 17.5%, P < 0.001) was significantly higher in children with malaria, who had a higher chance of showing either vomiting (odds ratio [OR]: 3.22; 95% CI: 2.14-4.91) or diarrhea (OR: 3.14; 95% CI: 1.99-5.07) at hospital admission. A subgroup analysis performed in children with severe malaria, severe anemia, or high-grade fever confirmed these results. Diarrhea was more frequent in infants and children younger than 3 years than in older children. The analysis of 71 malarious children with diarrhea who received intravenous artesunate showed that the symptom resolved within the first 24 hours since the beginning of the treatment in 85.9% of cases. The 3-fold higher prevalence of diarrhea and vomiting in malarious children compared with febrile controls may provide rationale for incorporating malaria testing in the symptom-guided diagnostic approach of the young child with diarrhea and vomiting in malaria-endemic settings

Religion and Development in Africa

What is development? Who defines that one community/ country is “developed”, while another community/ country is “under-developed”? What is the relationship between religion and development? Does religion contribute to development or underdevelopment in Africa? These and related questions elicit quite charged reactions in African studies, development studies, political science and related fields. Africa’s own history, including the memory of marginalisation, slavery and exploitation by global powers ensures that virtually every discussion on development is characterised by a lot of emotions and conflicting views. In this volume scholars from various African countries and many different religions and denominations contribute to this debate. The editors and authors E. CHITANDO (Zimbabwe), M. R. GUNDA (Zimbabwe/ Germany), L. TOGARASEI (Botswana), J. KÜGLER (Germany), A. O. ATIEMO (Ghana), S. AWUAH-NYAMEKYE (Ghana), S. K. BERMAN (Botswana), T. A. CHIMUKA (Lesotho), C. J. CHITA (Zambia), M. W. DUBE (Botswana), J. GATHOGO (Kenya), I. S. GUSHA (Zimbabwe), M. HARON (Botswana/ South Africa), S. F. JOHN (South Africa), C. J. KAUNDA (Zambia), M. M. KAUNDA (South Africa), S. M. KILONZO (Kenya), U. M. KIRIAGHE (Uganda), F. MACHINGURA (Zimbabwe), L. P. MASEKO (South Africa), L. MASENO (Kenya), P. MUNHENZVA (Zimbabwe), E. P. MOTSWAPONG (Botswana), N. MWALE (Zambia), C. MWANDAYI (Zimbabwe), H. J. NDZOVU (Kenya), B. NYAHUMA (Zimbabwe/ Germany), S. NYAWO (Swaziland), A. D. OMONA (Uganda), L. C. SIWILA (South Africa), B. TARINGA (Zimbabwe), N. T. TARINGA (Zimbabwe)