By Frank KamuntuÂ
On Thursday 8th August 2024 hundreds of KIU medical students crisscrossed the country as they shifted from one regional referral hospital to another. Whereas this was the first time field rotation experience, for those in forth year and fifth year it was just another moment to shift a new site.
Most of the students interviewed while preparing to board the university bus at KIU Teaching hospital could not hide their excitement to change location.Kampala International University (KIU), the largest private university in Uganda and second largest overall after Makerere University, has reaffirmed its commitment to producing well-rounded and practically competent doctors by strengthening its network of satellite training sites comprised of regional referral hospitals around the country.
As part of their practical learning, KIU medical students are dispatched to various regional referral hospitals across Uganda for comprehensive clinical rotations. This innovative approach, adopted over a decade ago, exposes students to a wide range of medical scenarios, ensuring they gain practical competences and develop mindsets suited for working in both remote and urban environments. Whereas in other Ugandan Universities the Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery (BMS) takes five years, at KIU programme takes five and a half (5.5) years. This is to allow for deepening of practical competences in clinical areas since each student must rotate in various hospitals around the country. By the time they graduate, these emerging doctors will be thoroughly equipped in all the major clinical disciplines, including internal medicine, surgery, psychiatry, obstetrics & gynecology, and pediatrics’.
According to the Dean of the Faculty of Clinical Medicine and Dentistry, Dr. Maxwell Okello, “There are now 12 hospitals that function as satellite centers spread across the country. By completion time, each student would have had clinical practice in various regions of Uganda. The other advantage of these rotations is that KIU employs and deploys specialists in all the areas at every satellite site. This exposure will enable them to develop a strong hands-on experience in various medical fields, giving KIU doctors an edge in the field.”At each of the 12 satellite sites, KIU provides central accommodations facilities for students. This is intended to promote sense of community life, peer learning and mentorship and security. The beauty of it is that the cost of tuition, transport and accommodation during these field rotations is met by the University. Students don’t incur any extra costs in this regard.
In response to concerns regarding KIU’s capacity handle a large number of medical students, the CEO of KIU Hospital in Ishaka, Dr. Umi Omar Bunu, said, “Our staff to student ratio is 1:6, ensuring personalized attention and mentorship. The clustering of students into smaller streams makes it convenient for all to access our state-of-the-art facilities like laboratories and equipment.
“Dr. Umi further explained that owing to the extensive capacity built over the years, KIU was assessed last year and cleared to admit a maximum of 600 new BMS students per year. This followed a meticulous assessment of the institution’s capacity in terms of staffing, facilities, sites for clinical rotation, and compliance with the guidelines and procedures.
Since 2009 KIU graduates medical doctors every year and many have gone ahead to excel in their professional careers.
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