Cultivating leaders for primary health care: A revised approach for transformative development.

Family physicians require leadership skills to strengthen team-based primary care services. Interviews with South African district managers confirmed the need to develop leadership skills in family physicians. The updated national programmatic learning outcomes for South African family physician training were published in 2021. They sparked the need for curriculum renewal at the University of Cape Town's Division of Family Medicine. A review of the leadership and governance module during registrar training showed that the sessions were perceived to be content heavy with insufficient opportunities for reflection. Following a series of stakeholder engagements, the module convenors co-designed a revised module that was blueprinted on the updated learning outcomes. The module incorporates a group coaching style, facilitating learning through reflection on one's experiences. The revised module was implemented in 2022. It aims to provide a transformative learning experience centred on students' perceptions of themselves as leaders, as well as professional identity formation and resilience building. This short report describes preliminary insights from the revised module's developmental phase and forms part of an ongoing iterative evaluation process.Contribution: Family physicians should lead across all their defined roles. Formal and informal learning opportunities are needed to facilitate their growth as leaders and help them to meet the health needs of communities served by an evolving health care system. This short report describes an example of a revised postgraduate module on leadership and governance, which may be of value to clinician educators and academic departments exploring innovative methods for the African region.

The exceptional potential in extending primary care exposure for South African medical interns.

No abstract available.

Mastering your fellowship: Part 3, 2024.

The series 'Mastering your Fellowship' provides examples of the question formats encountered in the written and clinical examinations, Part A of the Fellowship of the College of Family Physicians of South Africa (FCFP [SA]) examination. The series aims to help family medicine registrars (and supervisors) prepare for this examination.

Crafting a compelling curriculum vitae: Navigating the path to professional success.

No abstract available.

Mastering job interview skills for family physicians: Navigating the path to professional success.

No absract available.

Myriad untold stories unfolding daily: South Africa's pursuit of quality primary health care.

No abstract available.

Mastering your fellowship: Part 1, 2024.

The series, 'Mastering your Fellowship', provides examples of the question formats encountered in the written and clinical examinations, Part A of the Fellowship of the College of Family Physicians (South Africa) (FCFP [SA]) examination. The series is aimed at helping family medicine registrars (and their supervisors) in preparing for this examination.

A review of published research in the South African Family Practice - A clarion call to action.

No abstract available.

Mastering your fellowship: Part 3, 2023.

The series, 'Mastering your Fellowship', provides examples of the question formats encountered in the written and clinical examinations, Part A of the Fellowship of the College of Family Physicians of South Africa (FCFP [SA]) examination. The series is aimed at helping family medicine registrars (and their supervisors) in preparing for this examination.

Mastering Your Fellowship: Part 1, 2023.

The series 'Mastering your Fellowship' provides examples of the question formats encountered in the written and clinical examinations, Part A of the Fellowship of the College of Family Physicians of South Africa (FCFP [SA]) examination. The series is aimed at helping family medicine registrars (and their supervisors) in preparing for this examination.

The outbreak of monkeypox: A clinical overview.

The development of new zoonotic diseases such as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and monkeypox that can cause epidemics and high mortality rates have significantly threatened global health security. However, the increasing number of people with no immunity to poxvirus because of the end of the smallpox vaccination programme has created a vulnerable population for the monkeypox outbreak. On 23 July 2022, it was announced that the World Health Organization's director-general has determined that the multicountry outbreak of monkeypox constitutes a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. The monkeypox virus is an orthopoxvirus that causes a disease with symptoms similar to smallpox but less severe. Many unanswered questions remain regarding monkeypox's pathogenesis, transmission and host reservoir. There is currently no evidence that transmission by individuals can sustain zoonotic infections during human-to-human transmissions; the continued emergence of these pathogens highlights the interconnectedness of animals and humans. The increasing number of monkeypox cases outside the endemic region has highlighted the need for effective global capacity building to prevent the spread of the disease and its impact on global health security. The priority now is to stop the spread of the disease and protect frontline healthcare workers and the most vulnerable individuals. This article aims to comprehensively analyse the various aspects of the transmission and epidemiology of monkeypox. It also explores possible diagnostic techniques, therapeutics and prevention strategies. A key recommendation is that primary care and public health professionals are expected to increase their efforts to be vigilant and contain any potential outbreaks.

Artificial intelligence: A strategic opportunity for enhancing primary care in South Africa.

No abstract available.

Measuring the impact of community-based interventions on type 2 diabetes control during the COVID-19 pandemic in Cape Town - A mixed methods study.

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic exposed the risks of poorly controlled noncommunicable diseases, especially in persons with diabetes. The pandemic outbreak in Cape Town, South Africa, required a rapid reorganisation of primary care services. Community-based measures were activated to ensure continuity of care by implementing home delivery of medication by community health workers. After five months of de-escalated chronic care, observations at an urban primary care facility suggested that noncommunicable disease patients had not overtly decompensated despite suspending regular in-facility services. This study attempted to understand what impact de-escalation of regular care and escalation of community-based interventions had on type 2 diabetes patients at this primary care facility. METHODS: A mixed methods study design was used, consisting of data captured prospectively from diabetic patients who returned to the facility for routine care post-lockdown, as well as qualitative interviews to ascertain patients' experiences of the home delivery service. RESULTS: The data set included 331 (72%) patients in the home delivery group and 130 (28%) in the non-home delivery group. Regression analysis demonstrated a statistically significant relationship between home delivery and improved diabetic control (p  0.01), although this may be because of confounding factors. The mean glycaemic control was suboptimal both at baseline and post-lockdown in both groups. Interviews with 83 study patients confirmed the acceptability of the home delivery intervention. CONCLUSION: The rapid reorganisation of primary care services illustrates the versatility of a functional community-oriented primary care service, although not fully developed yet, to adapt to emerging community healthcare needs in the pandemic era.

Building the foundation for universal healthcare: Academic family medicine's ability to train family medicine practitioners to meet the needs of their community across the globe.

BACKGROUND:  The Declaration of Astana marked a revived global interest in investing in primary care as a means to achieve universal healthcare. Family medicine clinicians are uniquely trained to provide high-quality, comprehensive primary care throughout the lifespan. Yet little focus has been placed on understanding the needs of family medicine training programs. AIM:  This study aims to assess broad patterns of strengths and resource challenges faced by academic programs that train family medicine clinicians. METHODS:  An anonymous online survey was sent to family medicine faculty using World Organization of Family Doctors (WONCA) listservs. RESULTS:  Twenty-nine representatives of academic family medicine programs from around the globe answered the survey. Respondents cited funding for the program and/or individual trainees as one of either their greatest resources or greatest limitations. Frequently available resources included quality and quantity of faculty and reliable clinical training sites. Frequently noted limitations included recruitment capacity and social capital. Over half of respondents reported their program had at some point faced a disruption or gap in its ability to recruit or train, most often because of loss of government recognition. Reflecting on these patterns, respondents expressed strong interest in partnerships focusing on faculty development and research collaboration. LESSONS LEARNT:  This study provides a better understanding of the challenges family medicine training programs face and how to contribute to their sustainability and growth, particularly in terms of areas for investment, opportunities for government policy and action and areas of collaboration.

Erratum: The contribution of family physicians in coordinating care and improving access at district hospitals: The False Bay experience, South Africa.

No abstract available.

Mastering your fellowship: Part 3, 2022.

The series, 'Mastering your Fellowship', provides examples of the question formats encountered in the written and clinical examinations, Part A of the Fellowship of the College of Family Physicians of South Africa (FCFP SA) examination. The series is aimed at helping family medicine registrars (and their supervisors) prepare for this examination.

Embracing complexity in primary care.

No abstract available.

Mastering your fellowship: Part 2, 2022.

The series, 'Mastering your Fellowship', provides examples of the question format encountered in the written and clinical examinations, Part A of the Fellow of the College of Family Physicians South Africa (FCFP SA) examination. The series is aimed at helping family medicine registrars prepare for this examination. Model answers are available online.

A 'game of dressings': Strategies for wound management in primary health care.

Wound care management and the dressing of wounds represent some of the most basic services offered in primary health care facilities across Southern Africa. Clinicians should have a basic understanding of the processes of wound healing and wound bed preparation to match the ideal cost-effective dressing to the particular type of wound to be managed. In the 'kingdom of wounds', the authors use a popular analogy and propose the best five strategies for the clinician in choosing the right management option in the 'game of dressings'.

Mastering your fellowship: Part 1, 2022.

The series, 'Mastering your Fellowship', provides examples of the different question formats encountered in the written and clinical examinations, that is, Part A of the Fellowship of the College of Family Physicians South Africa (FCFP SA) examination. The series is aimed at helping family medicine registrars (and their supervisors) prepare for this examination.