Non-physician clinicians

We have good experience from sub-Saharan Africa, that task shifting from doctors to non-physician clinicians can address the HIV/AIDS treatment, improve tuberculosis control and manage health problems in children (IMC). Similarly, some operations usually done by surgeons and anaesthesiologists can be safely done non- specialists.

Surgical care is the safe provision of preoperative, operative, and post-operative surgical and anaesthesia services. Unfortunately, there are too few surgeons in Africa, and it is unlikely that a modest increase in the number of surgeons and anaesthesiologists will occur.

In HIV care, we recognized the Western model of care with medical specialists in secondary and tertiary hospitals, could not be copied in Africa. By adapting and selecting treatment protocols and task shifting, it was possible to treat millions of patients received antiretroviral drugs. Similarly, it is important in the surgical fields to avoid creating “islands of excellence in a sea of under provision”.

By enabling non-physician clinicians to do some essential operations, we may increase benefits while lessening harm among populations where the unmet need of surgical care is great.

Please also see a very good discussion on this topic written by Chu K, Rosseel P, Gielis P, Ford N (2009) Surgical Task Shifting in Sub-Saharan Africa. PLoS Med 6(5): e1000078. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1000078

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