European Parliamentary Research Services, (EPRS), European Parliament, Rue Wiertz, 60, B-1047, Brussels, Belgium.
Operational Research Unit, Doctors with Africa-Cuamm, Padua, Italy.
J Community Health. 2022 Apr;47(2):273-283. doi: 10.1007/s10900-021-01045-5. Epub 2021 Nov 11.
Medical schools are developing global health programmes, and medical students are requesting global health training and creating opportunities when these are not provided by medical schools. This article described the Wolisso Project (WP), a medical experience on clinical electives in Sub-Saharan Africa, driven by a collaboration between a student organisation and a Nongovernmental Organization (NGO). Preclinical medical students spent 4 weeks as part of a multidisciplinary medical team in Africa. Post-elective questionnaires were administered to all subjects who participated in the project. Of all, 141 students responded to the questionnaire. The participants came from 30 Italian universities. The main difficulties reported are due to the lack of resources for the exercise of the medical activity, and difficulties related to language and communication. The African experience had a positive impact on the progress of the studies upon return, with an increase in determination and motivation. The experience had also positive influences on the future professional choices and carriers. The experience seems to contribute not only to the professional growth, but also to the personal development. A key factor in the positive outcomes of this experience is it being implemented by an NGO with long-term working relationships with the African populations. Another is that the project is carried out in health facilities where NGO staff have been working for a long time. These factors reduce the potential risks connected with this type of experience. They ensure a satisfactory level of supervision, the lack of which has been a serious problem in many similar experiences. A well-structured, mentored experience in international health can have a positive impact on preclinical students' attitudes, including their compassion, volunteerism, and interest in serving underserved populations. Only a small number of Italian universities facilitate pre-graduate medical elective experiences in LMICs. The WP seems to be attempting to compensate for the lack of international experience in LMICs offered by universities. Italian medical schools should incorporate changes in their curricula to train socially responsible physicians.
医学院正在开设全球健康项目，医学生要求接受全球健康培训，并在医学院没有提供相关培训时创造机会。本文描述了 Wolisso 项目（WP），这是一个在撒哈拉以南非洲进行临床选修的医学体验项目，由学生组织和非政府组织（NGO）合作推动。医学预科生作为多学科医疗团队的一员在非洲度过了 4 周。所有参加该项目的人都接受了选修后问卷调查。共有 141 名学生对问卷做出了回应。参与者来自 30 所意大利大学。报告的主要困难是由于缺乏资源来开展医疗活动，以及与语言和沟通相关的困难。非洲的经历对返回后的学业进步产生了积极影响，增加了决心和动力。这种经历也对未来的职业选择和职业发展产生了积极影响。这种经历似乎不仅有助于专业成长，还有助于个人发展。这种经历产生积极结果的一个关键因素是，它是由一个与非洲人民有着长期合作关系的非政府组织实施的。另一个因素是，该项目是在卫生机构中进行的，非政府组织的工作人员在这些机构中已经工作了很长时间。这些因素降低了这种经历所带来的潜在风险。它们确保了监督的满意度，而在许多类似的经历中，缺乏监督一直是一个严重的问题。在国际健康领域进行结构良好、有指导的体验可以对医学预科生的态度产生积极影响，包括他们的同情心、志愿服务精神和为服务不足的人群服务的兴趣。只有少数意大利大学为医学生提供在 LMIC 国家进行医学选修的机会。WP 似乎试图弥补大学在 LMIC 国家提供的国际经验的不足。意大利医学院校应该在课程中做出改变，培养有社会责任感的医生。
