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Community-based education programs in Africa: faculty experience within the Medical Education Partnership Initiative
Damen Haile Mariam1, Atiene Solomon Sagay, Wilfred Arubaku
1Dr. Haile Mariam is professor of public health and health economics and program coordinator for MEPI, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Dr. Sagay is professor of obstetrics and gynecology, College of Medical Sciences, University of Jos, Jos, Nigeria. Dr. Arubaku is senior lecturer of dental surgery and curriculum chair, Faculty of Medicine, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, Uganda. Ms. Bailey is team lead for health workforce development for the USAID-funded CapacityPlus Project led by IntraHealth International, Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Ms. Baingana is a lecturer, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, and coordinator, MESAU Consortium Community-Based Education, Research, and Service Evaluation, Kampala, Uganda. Dr. Burani is director of academic affairs, Kampala International University Western Campus, Bushenyi, Uganda. Dr. Couper is professor and director, Centre for Rural Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, and a consultant to MEPI for the CapacityPlus Project led by IntraHealth International. Mr. Deery is a health workforce development officer for the USAID-funded CapacityPlus Project led by IntraHealth International, Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Dr. de Villiers is deputy dean of education, professor in family medicine, and principal investigator of MEPI, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, South Africa. Mr. Matsika is senior administrator, University of Zimbabwe College of Health Sciences MEPI Program, Harare, Zimbabwe. Dr. Mogodi is a lecturer and MBBS Phase I public health coordinator, School of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Botswana, Gaborone, Botswana. Dr. Mteta is professor and chair, Department of Urology, and dean, Faculty of Medicine, Kilimanjaro Christian Medical University College, Moshi, United Republic of Tanzania. Dr. Talib is assistant professor of medicine and of health polic
Purpose:
This paper examines the various models, challenges, and evaluative efforts of community-based education (CBE) programs at Medical Education Partnership Initiative (MEPI) schools and makes recommendations to strengthen those programs in the African context.
Methods:
Data were gathered from 12 MEPI schools through self-completion of a standardized questionnaire on goals, activities, challenges, and evaluation of CBE programs over the study period, from November to December 2013. Data were analyzed manually through the collation of inputs from the schools included in the survey.
Results:
CBE programs are a major component of the curricula of the surveyed schools. CBE experiences are used in sensitizing students to community health problems, attracting them to rural primary health care practice, and preparing them to perform effectively within health systems. All schools reported a number of challenges in meeting the demands of increased student enrollment. Planned strategies used to tackle these challenges include motivating faculty, deploying students across expanded centers, and adopting innovations. In most cases, evaluation of CBE was limited to assessment of student performance and program processes.
Conclusions:
Although the CBE programs have similar goals, their strategies for achieving these goals vary. To identify approaches that successfully address the challenges, particularly with increasing enrollment, medical schools need to develop structured models and tools for evaluating the processes, outcomes, and impacts of CBE programs. Such efforts should be accompanied by training faculty and embracing technology, improving curricula, and using global/regional networking opportunities.
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