Department of Medicine, University of Zimbabwe College of Health Sciences, Harare, Zimbabwe.
Dean's Office, University of Zimbabwe College of Health Sciences, Harare, Zimbabwe.
Glob Health Sci Pract. 2018 Mar 30;6(1):82-92. doi: 10.9745/GHSP-D-17-00052. Print 2018 Mar 21.
Sub-Saharan Africa has an inadequate number of health professionals, leading to a reduced capacity to respond to health challenges, including HIV/AIDS. From 2010 to 2015, the Medical Education Partnership Initiative (MEPI)-sponsored by the U.S. Presidents Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH)-was enthusiastically taken up by the University of Zimbabwe College of Health Sciences (UZCHS) and 12 other sub-Saharan African universities to develop models of training to improve medical education and research capacity. In this article, we describe the outcomes and challenges of MEPI in Zimbabwe.
UZCHS in partnership with the University of Colorado, Denver; Stanford University; University of Cape Town; University College London; and King's College London designed the Novel Education Clinical Trainees and Researchers (NECTAR) program and 2 linked awards addressing cardiovascular disease and mental health to pursue MEPI objectives. A range of medical education and research capacity-focused programs were implemented, including faculty development, research support, mentored scholars, visiting professors, community-based education, information and technology support, cross-cutting curricula, and collaboration with partner universities and the ministries of health and education. We analyzed quantitative and qualitative data from several data sources, including annual surveys of faculty, students, and other stakeholders; workshop exit surveys; and key informant interviews with NECTAR administrators and leaders and the UZCHS dean.
Improved Internet connectivity and electronic resource availability were early successes of NECTAR. Over the 5-year period, 69% (115 of 166) of faculty members attended at least 1 of 15 faculty development workshops. Forty-one faculty members underwent 1-year advanced faculty development training in medical education and leadership. Thirty-three mentored research scholars were trained under NECTAR, and 52 and 12 in cardiovascular and mental health programs, respectively. Twelve MEPI scholars had joined faculty by 2015. Full-time faculty grew by 36% (122 to 166), annual postgraduate and medical student enrollment increased by 61% (75 to 121) and 71% (123 to 210), respectively. To institutionalize and sustain MEPI innovations, the Research Support Center and the Department of Health Professions Education were established at UZCHS.
MEPI has synergistically revitalized medical education, research capacity, and leadership at UZCHS. Investments in creating a new research center, health professions education department, and, programs have laid the foundation to help sustain faculty development and research capacity in the country.
撒哈拉以南非洲的卫生专业人员数量不足，导致应对包括艾滋病毒/艾滋病在内的卫生挑战的能力下降。从 2010 年到 2015 年，由美国艾滋病救援计划（PEPFAR）和美国国立卫生研究院（NIH）赞助的医学教育伙伴关系倡议（MEPI）被津巴布韦大学健康科学学院（UZCHS）和其他 12 所撒哈拉以南非洲大学积极采用，以制定培训模式，提高医学教育和研究能力。在本文中，我们描述了 MEPI 在津巴布韦的成果和挑战。
UZCHS 与科罗拉多大学丹佛分校、斯坦福大学、开普敦大学、伦敦大学学院和伦敦国王学院合作，设计了 Novel Education Clinical Trainees and Researchers (NECTAR) 计划和 2 个相关奖项，以实现 MEPI 的目标，涉及心血管疾病和心理健康。实施了一系列以医学教育和研究能力为重点的项目，包括教师发展、研究支持、指导学者、客座教授、基于社区的教育、信息和技术支持、跨学科课程以及与合作伙伴大学和卫生部及教育部的合作。我们分析了来自多个数据源的定量和定性数据，包括对教师、学生和其他利益相关者的年度调查；研讨会结业调查；以及对 NECTAR 管理人员和领导以及 UZCHS 院长的关键信息采访。
NECTAR 的早期成功包括改善互联网连接和电子资源的可用性。在 5 年期间，69%（166 名教师中的 115 名）至少参加了 15 次教师发展研讨会中的 1 次。41 名教师接受了为期 1 年的医学教育和领导力高级教师发展培训。在 NECTAR 下培训了 33 名指导研究学者，分别有 52 名和 12 名参加了心血管和心理健康项目。到 2015 年，已有 12 名 MEPI 学者加入教师队伍。全职教师人数增加了 36%（122 人至 166 人），研究生和医学生的年度入学人数分别增加了 61%（75 人至 121 人）和 71%（123 人至 210 人）。为了使 MEPI 的创新制度化和可持续化，UZCHS 成立了研究支持中心和卫生专业教育系。
MEPI 协同振兴了 UZCHS 的医学教育、研究能力和领导力。为创建新的研究中心、卫生专业教育系和计划而进行的投资为在该国维持教师发展和研究能力奠定了基础。
