The need for pediatric urological care in Sub-Saharan Africa is enormous due to a rapidly growing pediatric-aged population and a disproportionate burden of congenital malformations. There are critical challenges in the provision of a skilled workforce and appropriate infrastructure.
OMI fellow Dr. Collins Chijioke Adumah is one of four pediatric surgeons working at the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospitals Complex in Ile-Ife, Nigeria, an OMI partner institution. Though the hospital sees some 800 children with urological conditions annually, it does not have a single specialized pediatric doctor. During his recent one-month OMI observership at the Sisters of Mercy Hospital in Linz, Dr. Adumah received specific pediatric urological training. Currently, he is working on the development of a sub-specialization program in pediatric urology in Nigeria. Dr. Adumah will be back in Salzburg in the spring of 2024 to continue his training. This is a wonderful example of global health done right!
I am Dr. Collins Chijioke Adumah, a consultant pediatric surgeon at the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospitals Complex in Ile-Ife, Nigeria. This summer, I visited the Pediatric Urology Department of the Sisters of Mercy Hospital in Linz.
The usual working day started at 7:15 am with a meeting where the residents, attendees, and Dr. Josef Oswald talked about the activities of the day, reviewed in-patient cases, and then discussed the patients on the operating list. These meetings gave me the opportunity to learn about the concept of individualized care for children. The meetings were followed by ward rounds, OR sessions, and clinics. The OR sessions allowed me to observe complex urological procedures in children. The clinic was always interesting and I could observe specific bedside imaging procedures for the evaluation of the urogenital tract in children. We don’t have a bedside ultrasound machine at my hospital, which affects our outcomes negatively. I am immensely grateful to Dr. Josef Oswald who gave me some instruments. I used the equipment today in the OR and it made a huge difference.
My desire is to improve pediatric urological care in Nigeria. This observership stimulated my interest in pediatric urology. It gave me the chance to acquire further training in this field and build a collaboration with colleagues in Linz. I am really grateful to the OMI for this unique opportunity!
