KIU outsources medical institutions for practicals.

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INNOCENT-THE BLOGGER-BOY

Kampala International University (KIU)

Kampala International University (KIU) has admitted it has no hospital for medical students’ clinical rotation at its Dar es Salaam campus, a necessary requisite short of which may lead to closure of the academic institution.

 

However, KIU Public Relations Officer, Kenneth Uki said while awaiting completion of the hospital construction at the year-end, the university had signed agreements with five public hospitals for academic access to their facilities.  

 

They include Muhimbili National Hospital (MNH), Temeke and Mwananyamala in Dar es Salaam, Tumbi and Kisarawe in Coast Region.   

 

Meanwhile, The Guardian has confirmed that the university signed Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) with MNH and Tanzania Veterinary Laboratory Agency (TVLA) in December 2013 to allow academic access to the hospital and to the laboratory facilities of the respective institutions. 

 

 “The agency shall in conjunction with the university college allow its employed Senior lecturers to train the university college medical students on part time basis for duration that shall be agreed by both parties to this MoU and the Senior lecturers from time to time,” reads an extract from MoU.

 

“The agency shall allow the university college to use its laboratory facilities for postgraduate students’ research work for the duration that shall be agreed on by both parties to the MoU from time to time,” said the excerpt.

 

The agreement also obliged the university to pay the agency “a fee as prescribed by TVLA rates as an integral part of the MoU for every student and for every time KIU uses its laboratory facilities.”

 

But KIU tells MNH that “the College is desirous to send its medical students to MNH for clinical support services and medical laboratory practical training in the latter’s specialized units to enable them to develop the necessary knowledge, skills and attitudes in order to provide high quality clinical, medical laboratory and pharmacy care to the Tanzanian community.”

 

According to MoU, the hospital accepted the request and asked the university to send a list of students and the department they would like to rotate at least two weeks before commencement of the training.

 

However, a visit by The Guardian newspaper at KIU revealed four laboratories for surgery, general practice in medicine, pharmacy and pharmacy technology, but Uki said the facilities were off bound to all first and second year students, given the government directive limiting the access to only senior students starting third year.

 

 “It’s very unfortunate that some students are ignorant of this medical rule. In fact, it is the first year students here who are insistent in demanding clinical rotation,” he said.

 

Meanwhile, it has been revealed that the students had other concerns besides demanding recognition of their academic awards when they went rampage last month attacking each other, people on the streets, marauding and damaging property. 

 

The situation drifted the university to chaos, sparking police intervention to restore peace  and  order  at  the campus.

 

Among others, the students demanded that the university should reduce the number of course units per semester, lower fees as well as blacklist foreign lecturers and staff members that they might be fired because of low academic credentials.