Research fellows and staff of the NIHR Global Surgery Unit (GSU) visited Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) in Ile Ife, Nigeria on the 14th-15th of September 2023 to deliver a series of lectures to medical students, surgical residents and other health care professionals.
The GSU contingent was composed of Dr Dmitri Nepogodiev- Public Health registrar and Academic Clinical Lecturer; Drs Maria Picciochi and Virginia Ledda- Clinical PhD Fellows; Dr Omar Omar- Senior Statistician and Epidemiologist, and Mr Michael Bahrami-Hessari- Community Engagement and Involvement (CEI) manager.
The first lectures delivered on the afternoon of the 14th were aimed at 4th and final year medical students and included fundamental topics on the purpose of research and identifying a good research problem. This was followed by practical advice on how a research abstract is written and how an effective academic poster is constructed. Highlights of the GSU cluster randomised trial CHEETAH and DRAGON- an upcoming trial aiming to compare reusable versus disposable surgical drapes and gowns, were also presented. The session ended with the GSU visitors sharing practical tips on how to develop a career in research.
On the morning of the 15th, a research forum was held specifically for surgical residents and tackled topics such as generating research ideas, getting patient input and choosing the appropriate study design, research ethics, the basics of statistics, presenting and publishing research and how research can influence health guidelines and practice.
Finally, in the afternoon of the same day, a symposium on global surgery was held with a variety of health professionals in attendance. Topics included the sharing of the highlights of our randomised controlled trials (FALCON, CHEETAH, PENGUIN, DRAGON), cohort studies (COVIDSurg, HIPPO), health economics analysis (LION) and our CEI initiatives most notably the development of our community and patient education toolkit.
OAU is a spoke within the Nigeria Hub and has been a top recruiter in GSU trials.