In 2010, the Ministry of Health (MoH) issued the new training material "Guidance on diagnosis and treatment of malaria" in order to improve the quality of diagnosis and treatment of malaria in accordance with the current malaria situation. Confronted with increased tendency of malaria morbitdity and mortality in severely-hit areas, the Central Vietnam Global Fund (VGF) Malaria Project has supported training for health workers at the provincial and district levels under VGF project in Central Vietnam.
According to the plan of additional budget operation approved by the central project management unit (CPMU) (Document No. 115/QTC-KH on March 30, 2010), the project management unit (PMU) of IMPE Quy Nhon takes responsibility for training in diagnosis and treatment of malaria for health staff at provinces and districts of 12 provinces participating in the project in Central Vietnam (except 2 provinces of Quang Binh and Quang Tri) with a total of 297 participants.
Participants to the training courses were doctors of provincial and district general hospitals, leaders and staff majoring in diagnosis and treatment in malaria control centers/ provincial preventive medicine centres, staff of the IMPE Quy Nhon and lectures from Hue University of Medicine, Tay Nguyen University and several medical secondary schools in Central Vietnam.
The main contents of training courses are to assess malaria situation, causes of the increase of malaria morbidity and mortality; evaluate the quality of diagnosis and treatment of malaria in hospitals; present new points in the training material "Guidance on diagnosis and treatment of malaria" of MoH, clinical diagnosis and treatment of uncomplicated malaria, mechanism of pathogenesis, specific treatment, emergency resuscitation of malignant malaria; changes in clinical and paraclinical evaluation of complicated malaria, antimalarial drugs in use and basis of specific antimalarial drugs combination; situation of drug-resistant malaria parasites, assessment of drug resistance and drug efficacy, requirements for monitoring diagnosis and treatment of malaria.
According to the training results of the first 6 months of 2010, the PMU of the Institute has completed 10 training courses of diagnosis and treatment of malaria for health staff at provincial and district levels. There were 268 over 297 participants to the courses (accounting for 90.23%) with 12 participants from Institute's staff (4.48%), 51 from provincial level (19.03%) and 205 from the district level (76.49%); male students account for 85.07% and female students 16.03%. They also have difference in qualifications with masters making up 5.6%, doctors 42.54%, physicians 17.54%, bachelors 14.55%, technicians 11.57%, nurses 2.99% and other medical workers 5.22%.
Dr. Trieu Nguyen Trung, Director of IMPE Quy Nhon delivering his lecture in a training course
of diagnosis and treatment of malaria for health staff at district level. |
The training results of 10 courses is as follows: Excellent 26.35%, Good 71.27%, Fair 2.38%, no poor trainees. The participants' knowledge is updated and significantly improved with the output results (post-test) usually higher than input ones (pre-test). The average mark of pre-test is from 5.5 to 7 out of 12 (equivalent to 12 questions) and that of post-test from 10 to 11 out of 12. These results showed that the training courses have improved the capacity of health staff in diagnosis and treatment at all levels.
After the training courses, all health staff from treatment lines of Central Vietnam have not only mastered the MoH’s training material "Guidance on diagnosis and treatment of malaria" newly issued in 2010, but also drawn essential practical experience as well as updated valuable information, thereby enhancing the effectiveness of diagnosis and treatment of malaria, actively contributing to reducing malaria morbidity and mortality .