Basic plastic surgery skills for district and community doctors to manage Buruli ulcer in Ghana

RESUMO

Background: The increase in incidence of Buruli ulcer in Ghana has also been complicated by problems in the care of the patients including lack of knowledge and training by staff, unwillingness of the staff to handle the cases for fear of contracting the disease. Method: An evaluation of training workshop on basic plastic surgery skills. Results: Three basic plastic surgery skills training workshops were held in 3 hospitals in 3 different districts in the region with participation from 15 hospitals/health centers drawn from 7 districts of the Ashanti Region. In all 128 health personnel comprising of Doctors ­ 18, Medical Assistants ­ 24, Clinical Nurses ­ 60 and Others ­ 26 were trained. These trainees went on to form the core of the so-called Buruli Ulcer Management Teams (BUMTs), which are now active in 6 of the institutions that participated in the programme. Conclusion: As a result of these workshops active Buruli Ulcer Management Teams (BUMTs) have been formed in 6 health institutions in the region