Kenyan Students and Registrars Travel to North America

A total of 15 Moi University School of Medicine (MUSM) fifth year students came to North America this spring to experience first-hand the nuances of being a medical student in the U.S. and Canada and to explore their dreams. For the past 14 years, Moi students have visited Indiana University School of Medicine as well as member institutions of the AMPATH Consortium. The students spent approximately six weeks at their respective schools (see sidebar at right). At IU, the students were assigned to 3 patient teams on the internal medicine wards at Wishard Hospital. All students have returned to continue and complete their 5th year at MUSM. On June 1st, within days of the departure of our Kenyan medical students, Nadia Aliyan and Beatrice Njogu, both Masters in Medicine (MMED) registrars from Kenya arrived in Indianapolis. Both Nadia and Beatrice will rotate for 6 months on the sub-specialties of Radiology, Intensive Care, Cardiology, Renal and Infectious Disease, with an additional month for an elective rotation. Stephen Kalya, also a MMED registrar, is spending his 6 months at the University of Utah studying the same specialties. Masters in Pediatrics (MPED) registrars, Paul Binott, Philip Cheptinga and Audrey Chepkemoi, will arrive in Indianapolis in late July and will spend 4 months concentrating in pediatric specialties including Hematology, Intensive Care, Neonatal ICU, Cardiology and Nephrology. All Masters registrars will return to Kenya on December 2. While here, they are encouraged to explore the Greater Indianapolis and nearby areas.

An MMED Perspective

By: Nadia Aliyan

The year 2010 has promised to be a year full of surprises. By January, I had cleared my first year of my residency in Medicine and was looking forward to stating the second. With very limited resources available at the government hospital where I was trained it was going to be a repeat of the rotations I did last year - mainly the general wards, HIV and TB clinics. But the IU partnership with my university opened a portal into the real world of medicine. In my country, especially in the rural areas, hospitals cannot cater to most of the medical needs taken for granted elsewhere. In a few weeks, I have learned more than a few years could teach me back home. From the intensive/critical care units to the radiology department, I have witnessed a medical organization where no skill or effort is spared to save lives. There is so much to take home – to my colleagues and to my patients. And in all the layers of the medical arena, there is the Hoosier hospitality where everyone has one true objective…and that is to help.

To all the friends I have made in this short time. Thank you. Asante.