Thanks Timsta,
We are third world so a lot of things like linacs, Radiation oncology, cath labs are things we can only dream of - we have 49 doctors over 140 islands serving 103,000 people and they are flat out doing the basics - renal disease is a death sentence here. For most specialised services we use medivac - in fact as I write I am just leading a project to build our first CT scanner facility to try and stop so many expensive medivacs to overseas. Our entire health budget is in the order of 11 mill USD so its a question of teaching the basics - we are well under way with the courses, as you say the A & P, digital and analog electronics etc are heavy - we are adapting an electronics course at a university in Fiji and providing ten specialised biomedical modules along with mentored on the job training and interactive courses im currently writing but they are on the basics - if we can get them to be able to understand and at least have a go at fixing 80% of the basic gear then we will be so much better off. You are correct, Radiology - any imaging is not included beyond a very brief introduction so they can at least describe to an experienced tech what the problem is. As we are remote area - this course is being developed for fourteen Pacific nations from Palau in the West to the Cooks in the East, and both sides of the equator we need to concentrate on the very basics - the first module includes such things as medical torches, scales and suction units, oxygen concentrators etc and we build from there.
This week I am in the process of converting one country to digital imaging (Cooks) - all these countries still use wet film and the spent chemicals are just poured down the drain into some of the most beautiful pristine environments and I hope to get Tonga completely digital early next year - then move to other countries - its a huge project moneywise - seven figures for Tonga alone but an easy sell for the aid agencies in thes environmentally enlightened times.
Any suggestions are welcomed and any help/advice you can give on any topic is greatly appreciated.
Andy
