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CARDIOVASCULAR JOURNAL OF AFRICA • Volume 28, No 5, September/October 2017
338
AFRICA
Congress News
Building and strengthening capacity for cardiovascular
research in Africa through technical training workshops:
a report of the joint course on health research methods
by the Clinical Research Education Networking and
Consultancy and the Ivorian Society of Cardiology
Bonaventure Suiru Dzekem, Jean Baptiste Anzouan Kacou, Martin Abanda, Euloge Kramoh, Yves
Yapobi, Samuel Kingue, Andre Pascal Kengne, Anastase Dzudie
Abstract
Africa bears a quarter of the global burden of disease but
contributes less than 2% of the global research publications
on health, partially due to a lack of expertise and skills to
carry out scientific research. We report on a short course
on research methods organised by the Clinical Research
Education Networking and Consultancy (CRENC) during
the third international congress of the Ivorian Cardiac
Society (SICARD) in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire. Results from
the pre- and post-test evaluation during this course showed
that African researchers could contribute more to scientific
research and publications, provided adequate support and
investment is geared towards the identification and training
of motivated early-career scientists.
With about 17% of the global population, Africa bears 25%
of the global burden of disease, yet it contributes less than
2% of the world’s health research publications.
1
This negligible
contribution of African scientific health knowledge is partially
explained by the lack of adequate training in research across
most universities in the region.
2,3
It is vital for any African institution to develop a critical mass
of clinicians that can effectively carry out research and publish
their findings. The Clinical Research Education Networking
and Consultancy (CRENC), a Cameroon-based research
organisation, was established to improve skills acquisition in
research in Africa by developing research priorities and training
African clinical researchers in partnership with stakeholders with
a similar vision.
4
The international short course on human health research
methods titled ‘Fostering dissemination of research findings in
routine clinical practice’ was organised by the CRENC during
the third international congress of the Ivorian Cardiac Society
(SICARD) held at Afrikland Hotel, Abidjan, from 9 to 11 May
2017. This half-day training session brought together a selected
group of 50 participants, most of whom were cardiologists. It
included a pre-test, lectures on how to ask a research question,
study designs, and how to write and publish a scientific article,
as well as a post-test. Here we provide a report on this course.
Course introduction and pre-test evaluation
The course began at 14:00 with an opening speech from the
Chair, Professor Yves Yapobi. Dr M Abanda then coordinated
the administration of pre-test multiple-choice questions. These
comprised six questions on how to ask a research question, five
questions on research study designs and 15 questions on how to
write and publish a scientific article.
Fig. 1.
Participants during the post-test evaluation.
Clinical Research Education Networking and Consultancy,
Douala, Cameroon
Bonaventure Suiru Dzekem, MD
Martin Abanda, MD
Anastase Dzudie, MD, PhD, FESC,
aitdzudie@yahoo.comSociété Ivoirienne de Cardiologie (SICARD) and Institut de
Cardiologie d’Abidjan, Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire
Jean Baptiste Anzouan Kacou, MD
Euloge Kramoh, MD
Yves Yapobi, MD
Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University
of Yaoundé I, Cameroon
Samuel Kingue, MD
Anastase Dzudie, MD, PhD, FESC
South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town,
South Africa
Andre Pascal Kengne, MD, PhD