Two physicians trained on  UCT’s African Paediatric Fellowship Program (APFP) have been inspired to introduce substantive changes to improve the impact of a clinic in their hospital in Tanzania. Dr Edward Kija (from Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences(MUHAS) and Mr Abdallah Makallah (from Muhimbili National Hospital (MNH), both from Dar-es-Salaam, are setting up a multi-disciplinary clinic for children at MNH which is the largest tertiary referral hospital in Tanzania. 

The African Paediatric Fellowship Program (APFP) is providing hope to Africa’s children by training African paediatric doctors motivated to building capacity in child health services. Globally, half of all childhood deaths occur in Africa with many of the survivors suffering long-term complications. Coupled with the ‘brain drain’ and an ill-equipped health workforce to address the related challenges, the need to substantially increase paediatric healthcare capacity in Africa is urgent and indisputable. Developed by the Department of Paediatrics and Child Health in 2008, the APFP has trained 73 African physicians to date, many of whom have made significant contributions to child health in their respective countries. 

Dr Kija and Mr Makallah are two such fellows. Their new clinic is an improvement to the existing Cerebral Palsy clinic which was not providing sufficient multi-disciplinary communication to allow the best outcomes for patients. Patients, who were previously seen by different health practitioners at different times, will now have multidisciplinary teams assigned to assess, manage and plan their care. 

APFP coordinator Avril du Preez said the clinic is truly a great achievement. “Multi-disciplinary care is not practised in most of the partner institutions. Once the fellows commence training in Cape Town their eyes are opened to the possibilities of how this care can positively impact a child’s life.” 

The APFP program is unique in that it partners with thirty-three centres in 13 African countries, and encompasses diverse paediatric disciplines. 

“We are proud that the APFP is contributing to capacity-building in Africa. By training doctors from Africa in Africa, the APFP is growing a network of motivated, highly skilled clinicians who are equipped to advance child health on our continent,” says Prof Heather Zar, head of the Department of Paediatrics and Child Health at UCT.