GLOBAL Rehabilitation Initiative
Educational Program in Clinical Kinesiology
In collaboration with Magu District Council (Mwanza Region, Tanzania), the Tanzania Home Economics Association, SOS Children's Village and Villages of Hope, we have initiated East Africa's first educational program in physical rehabilitation for clinical officers. This program has been enthusiastically adopted across Tanzania, and neighbouring countries in East Africa. Most recently, we have also formed collaborations in Australia, Cambodia, Indonesia and Timor Leste to create a truly Global Rehabilitation Initiative.
Our educational program integrates 3 approaches: i) face-to-face mentoring in clinic where our international volunteers work side-by-side with local clinical officers, ii) asynchronous online learning through our dedicated learning management system, and iii) face-to-face tele-mentoring as partners in Project ECHO. The latter approach involves weekly sessions during which our local learners present and discuss current cases, while our international experts assist and provide short didactic sessions on topics of special interest.
Our objective is to increase the knowledge and skills of local health care providers, improve services to families and children affected by disability and, importantly, to develop local expertise to take over full ownership of our educational program.
Rehabilitation can change families
When Dr. Clara White first arrived in Tanzania in the summer of 2018 as a clinical volunteer, this beautiful baby girl was one of her first patients. Born with Down Syndrome, at her first visit she couldn’t sit, hold her head up, stand up or talk. After just a month, she was sitting on her own, holding her head up, crawling and saying “mama” and “baba” (for dad). She is working on her balance and standing without help. Her increasing health has reduced pressure in the family and brought them all closer together.
Why The Global Rehabilitation Initiative?
Global Peace Network and its partners service rehabilitation clinics across the globe, and deliver the first post-graduate educational program in rehabilitation for clinical officers in East Africa and southeast Asia. Currently, front line primary care providers in many low=eincome countries receive extensive training in infectious diseases and acute care, but little or no training in rehabilitation. However, as campaigns against malaria, HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis are showing great success, chronic musculoskeletal disorders have emerged as the single greatest health burden on many economies. Global Peace Network is happy to be on the forefront of tackling this important challenge. If you wish to support our initiative, you may do so through our Canada Helps page.