Upskilling radiologists in Kenya
Dr Omar Islam
Head of the Department of Diagnostic Radiology at Queen's University, Canada
More than half of the 47 counties in Kenya are without a radiologist which creates challenges for caring for patients in need of diagnostic radiology services and achieving good health and wellbeing.
Through the ACU Fellowship, the Queen's University, Canada has partnered with the University of Nairobi to help improve the existing capacity for training radiologists in Kenya. The collaboration aims to promote medical education and professional development at the University of Nairobi’s Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Radiation Medicine through their participation in virtual educational training programmes at Queen’s University.
The online programme is guided by a bidirectional learning framework that incorporates radiology residency training content from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and the University of Nairobi. It builds capacity in diagnostic radiology to improve and increase the availability of radiology services in Kenya, particularly in rural areas.
We are delighted to share that more than 50 Kenyan radiology residents are currently participating in scheduled online radiology lectures, featuring special topics in radiology and emergency department collaborations and monthly grand rounds, in addition to an artificial intelligence and radiology lecture series at Queen’s University.
The ACU Fellowship has provided a unique opportunity to collaborate and transfer knowledge and skills in a cross-cultural context. In the long-term, it is anticipated that this type of collaborative training will have a positive impact on future generations of radiologists in Kenya by increasing the number of well-trained Kenyan radiology graduates.
The Fellowships enable university staff at ACU member universities to collaborate with other member universities in different countries across a broad range of disciplines. Applicants can choose to either collaborate in-person or online.
