Non-physician clinicians in 47 sub-Saharan African countries
Document Type
Journal Article
Publication Date
12-22-2007
Journal
Lancet
Volume
370
Issue
9605
DOI
10.1016/S0140-6736(07)60785-5
Abstract
Many countries have health-care providers who are not trained as physicians but who take on many of the diagnostic and clinical functions of medical doctors. We identified non-physician clinicians (NPCs) in 25 of 47 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, although their roles varied widely between countries. In nine countries, numbers of NPCs equalled or exceeded numbers of physicians. In general NPCs were trained with less cost than were physicians, and for only 3-4 years after secondary school. All NPCs did basic diagnosis and medical treatment, but some were trained in specialty activities such as caesarean section, ophthalmology, and anaesthesia. Many NPCs were recruited from rural and poor areas, and worked in these same regions. Low training costs, reduced training duration, and success in rural placements suggest that NPCs could have substantial roles in the scale-up of health workforces in sub-Saharan African countries, including for the planned expansion of HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment programmes. © 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
APA Citation
Mullan, F., & Frehywot, S. (2007). Non-physician clinicians in 47 sub-Saharan African countries. Lancet, 370 (9605). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(07)60785-5