GE Healthcare and the Kenya Association of Radiologists (KAR) held their 2nd Radiology Clinical Day to train more than 100 Kenyan radiologists on the latest medical imaging technologies and techniques to improve diagnosis and disease management.
The one-day forum themed Elevating Radiology was focused on gastrointestinal and abdominal radiology. Topics covered included advanced technologies in body imaging, advanced digital mammography techniques, functional imaging of prostate cancer, imaging of the liver and liver care management among other topics which will help practitioners optimize their work.
According to KAR, limited training positions and lack of comprehensive post-masters training opportunities within the country necessitate partnership. This is done within the industry and other resource parties to promote healthcare training and continuous professional development of the radiology fraternity in the country.
Speaking during the session, Jennifer Kinyoe, Senior Vice President Financing for GE Healthcare East Africa said, “Accurate diagnosis is a result of quality imaging services done with quality technology by competent healthcare professionals. We are honoured to partner with KAR to ensure Kenya’s medical technologists are equipped with the right skills to continue providing better outcomes for patients.” Kinyoe added that the annual Radiology Day initiative is part of the company’s efforts to ensure sustainability and long-term utilization of advanced medical technologies and solutions.
Dr. Elijah Kwasa, Chairperson of KAR said, “Kenya, like majority other African countries, still faces acute challenge of trained radiologists and other medical technologists. As a result, expensive medical equipment and machines are underutilized and sometimes damaged within a short period of time. We are excited to partner with GE Healthcare to upskill our radiologists on the latest trends in the industry.”
Commenting on last year’s Radiology day, the former Chairperson of KAR Dr. Beatrice Mugi noted, “Last year’s Radiology Day focused on current trends in neuroimaging and a major outcome of the forum was the stroke imaging guidelines and management shared by one of the invited speakers from India. Kenya, a developing country, like India, currently lacks such unified guidelines and hence a key takeaway for us was the necessity for the country to adopt such guidelines in future to help manage the morbidity and mortality associated with strokes.”
Participants were exposed to the latest medical imaging technologies and techniques including Definium™ XR120 digital X-ray which brings the world of digital technology to imaging facilities that rely on analogue equipment. GE Healthcare continues its commitment to capacity building and upskilling initiatives across the region that will sustainably strengthen the local healthcare ecosystem and support governments’ UHC agenda. In Kenya, over 1400 healthcare professionals have now been trained through the Healthcare Skills & Training Institute launched in 2016 in partnership with Ministry of Health.