A survey of the status of education and research in anaesthesia and intensive care medicine at the University Teaching Hospital in Lusaka, Zambia.
BACKGROUND
Current knowledge of the situation of anaesthesia in developing countries is limited. A survey of the status of education and research based on hospital records, records of the anaesthesia section, nursing records, personal observations as well as personal communication with staff, patients and hospital managers was carried out in a 1863-bed university teaching hospital located in the capital of a least developed Sub-Saharan African Country.


METHODS
Classification and evaluation of the data was based on the three aspects of the role of university teaching hospitals in Western countries: (I) patient care, (II) university teaching and post-graduation training, as well as (III) research activities. The section "patient care" was sub-divided into anaesthesia, intensive care medicine, emergency medicine, and pain therapy. The Department of Anaesthesia at the University Teaching Hospital of Lusaka, Zambia, is organized as a subdivision of the surgical department and is not involved in emergency medicine or pain therapy. Thirteen out of seventeen operating theatres, one recovery room, and a ten bed intensive care unit are serviced by the Department of Anaesthesia.


RESULTS
Anaesthetic equipment, medical supplies, drugs, and consumables are all in limited supply. There are limited statistics on perioperative complications and mortality. Anaesthesia at the university teaching hospital of a least developed Sub-Saharan African Country is severely short of both a workforce and resources.


CONCLUSIONS
We have described strategies which may help to reverse this trend, the most important of which is to promote anaesthesia as an essential specialty within hospitals in developing countries.
Jochberger
Stefan
S
Department of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine, Innsbruck Medical University, Anichstrasse 35, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria. Stefan.Jochberger@i-med.ac.at
Ismailova
Feruza
F
Banda
Daniel
D
Mayr
Viktoria D
VD
Luckner
Günter
G
Lederer
Wolfgang
W
Wenzel
Volker
V
Wilson
Iain H
IH
Dünser
Martin W
MW
D000776:Anesthesiology / Q000193:education* / Q000295:instrumentation; D035843:Biomedical Research / Q000295:instrumentation; D003422:Critical Care; D003906:Developing Countries; D004501:Education, Medical; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006785:Hospitals, University / Q000458:organization & administration; D006801:Humans; D015024:Zambia