Thread by @mentorshipzim

Hello Everyone

I am Norman Matara
@drnmatara
and I will be tweeting from this page today
Follow this thread and feel free to ask any question and I will try my best to answer all questions

I am a Medical Doctor and Public Health Specialist currently practicing in Zimbabwe. I run a private medical practice and I am the current Secretary General of the Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights

Today I will share with you about
1. My education journey
2. Work experience
3. Chevening Scholarship and Mandela Washington Fellowship
4. Challenges and possible Solutions in the public health sector in Zim
5. COVID-19 and COVID-19 Vaccines

I grew up in Chinhoyi and did my primary and secondary school at Chikonohono Primary and Nemakonde High school and then Zengeza 1 High School for A Levels. I completed my Bachelor in Medicine and Bachelor in Surgery degrees at the University of Zimbabwe

I obtained my Masters in Public Health International from the University of Leeds in the UK. Living and studying in Leeds was a life changing opportunity for which I am grateful for even up to this day. The course offered trips to the W.H.O headquarters....

.., UN Headquarters, UNAIDS and many other International health organizations & the links and networking I got from these are still useful up to date. In addition I got to interact with top Professors in the field of Medicine. Some who had written books we had used in Med school

I also got to learn about the different cultures and values in the UK, and also got an opportunuty to watch my favorite team @Arsenal play live at the Emirates Stadium. Something I have always dreamt of as a child

2. Work Experience
After completing medical school I worked as a medical intern (commonly referred to as Junior Doctor) at Chitungwiza Central Hospital for 2 years. Internship offers an opportunity to practice medicine under the supervision of a team of more experienced doctors

During Internship I was elected to be the Secretary General of the Zimbabwe Hospital Doctors Association @ZHDAofficial, a labour organization that champions for better remuneration and better working conditions for doctors working in public hospitals

At @ZHDAofficial we were often criticized for going on strike to try and improve the welfare of doctors. "You took the Hippocratic Oath, you should not be on strike'.. most people would argue. What really is the Hippocratic Oath?

The Hippocratic Oath is an ancient Oath attributed to the Greek Physician which dates back to AD275. The oath is the earliest form of medical ethics, some which remain of utmost importance in the practice of medicine today

However most if not all medical practitioners no longer swear to the Hippocratic Oath. the oath has been modernized to cater for the 21st century. Most doctors now take the Geneva Declaration, which is updated regularly. the recent Geneva Declaration actually say..

.. doctors need to take better care of themselves in order to take good care of their patients. When Hippocrates introduced the oath doctors back then did not have to pay school fees for their children, pay rent, buy fuel, pay for medication etc...

... hence it is not fair to bring the Hippocratic Oath when doctors complained of poor working conditions and remuneration

After completing internship I then worked as a Government Medical Officer at Chinhoyi Provincial Hospital. Working in the district is both challenging and exciting. Challenging in the fact that you often face difficult cases and you have very limited resources to use

You start seeing patients from very poor backgrounds who may not even afford the medication that you prescribe. Some may even ask for bus fare during a consultation. It is at this time that I grew a passion for public health

In 2015 I was awarded the Chevening Scholarship to study for a Masters in Public Health International at the University of Leeds.

Chevening Scholarships are awarded by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office to potential future leaders all over the world to pursue a one year masters degree program at a University in the UK. It is awarded to people who have the passion, ideas....

..and influence to provide the solutions and leadership needed to create a better future. The scholarship is fully funded, meaning you will be able to concentrate on your studies whilst at the same time enjoying the best that the UK can offer

Chevening offers an opportunity to learn at some of the best universities in the world whilst at the same time enjoying your life. I got to travel all over Europe, watch live EPL Football, watch live cricket at the famous Lord's Cricket Ground

I completed my Chevening journey and I won the prestigious John Griffiths Award for Distinctive work at the University of Leeds. Upon returning to Zimbabwe I was hired to work as an Evaluation Coordinator by the University of California at San Francesco

Chevening applications for this year open on 3 August 2021 and I urge all those eligible to apply. You will not regret.
For more information on eligibility criteria and how to apply please follow the link below
chevening.org

In 2017 I was awarded the Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders and I spent 6 weeks learning about Business & Entrepreneurship at Drake University, Iowa, U.S.A. This was another enriching experience as as a medical doctor I got to learn new skills & knowledge...

...which is not learnt in medical school. The fellowship gave me opportunities to network with over 1000 young African leaders, and over the years we have formed strong professional, business and academic networks

General applications for the MWF have been suspended for 2021 due ton the COVID-19 Pandemic. However you can follow the link below to learn more about YALI Network and to keep updated when applications are open
mandelawashingtonfellowship.org

Public Health Challenges In Zimbabwe
The health sector in Zim has been facing a lot of challenges in the past 2 decades and we have witnessed a decline in the quality of service delivery in most public hospitals. I give my own OPINIONS on the key challenges & possible solutions

Health Workforce Challenges
a) Perennial Industrial Actions, Work boycotts and poor retention of skilled labour
b) Extremely High Health Worker to Patient Ratio

Possible Solutions
Relook at the Health Services Act & Health Services Board model
Possibly establish Health Services Commission , directly funded from budget, pool donor support in financing human resources and avenue for separate non-monetary incentives for health workers

Health sector establishment audit and realignment with increasing population to address high health worker to patient ratio

Essential and Emergency Medicines
a) Shortages of emergency & essential medicines
Urgent investment in increasing capacity utilization of Natpharm, CAPS & local giant pharmaceuticals
Essential drug checklist in all state health centers & priority in foreign currency allocations

Health Finance Challenges
a) Out of pocket healthcare financing- unsustainable
b)Persistent poor regulation of medical aids, monopoly of state funded medical aids in civil service and untimely payment of service providers

Sln: Adoption of a comprehensive state funded health insurance policy financed by taxes
Setting up of a clear standards framework that is legally binding for health insurance companies

My last contribution is on COVID-19 Vaccines. The Zim gvt has done well in acquiring vaccines for the nation, but the uptake of these vaccines has not been convincing in the general population. Mainly due to vaccine misinformation and disinformation

History of Vaccines
17th Century- Buddhist monks drank snake venom to confer immunity to snake bite and variolation
Edward Jenner in 1796, inoculated a 13 year-old-boy with vaccinia virus (cowpox), &demonstrated immunity to smallpox. In 1798, e 1st smallpox vaccine was developed

Over the past 100 years many more vaccines have been produced and have been used safely and effectively to control pandemics

Vaccination is a simple, safe, and effective way of protecting people against harmful diseases, before they come into contact with them
Vaccines train your immune system to create antibodies, just as it does when it’s exposed to a disease.

Vaccination is a simple, safe, and effective way of protecting people against harmful diseases, before they come into contact with them
Vaccines train your immune system to create antibodies, just as it does when it’s exposed to a disease.

After getting vaccinated, you develop immunity to that disease, without having to get the disease first.
This is what makes vaccines such powerful medicine. Unlike most medicines, which treat or cure diseases, vaccines prevent them

What's in a vaccine?
Water is the main ingredient.
Active ingredient- a very small amount of a harmless form of the bacteria/virus you are immunising against
Adjuvants- creates a strong immune response e.g aluminium found in drinking water

What's in a vaccine?
Preservatives and stabilisers- maintain vaccine quality, safe storage and prevent contamination
Residual traces of substances used in the manufacture of the vaccine.
Its a myth that vaccines contain chips and magnets that can trace people

COVID-19 is not the first pandemic in the world. The world has faced many infectious pandemics before, and most of them were controlled using vaccines as seen on the graph below. Cases of diseases fell immediately after people started vaccinated

A similar trend can be seen in the U.S.A where the daily COVID-19 related deaths have fallen drastically after the introduction of vaccines as shown below. These are early indicators that vaccines work and are our way out of this pandemic

Are vaccines safe?
YES. Every authorized or approved vaccine goes through safety testing
Before a vaccine is ever recommended for use, it’s tested in labs.
These tests can take several years and answer important questions like:

Is the vaccine safe?
What dose (amount) works best?
How does the immune system react to it?
Every batch of vaccines is tested for quality and safety- potent, purity, sterile
Vaccines are monitored after they’re recommended to the public

Vaccine production typically takes years, so some may question why were the covid-19 vaccines produced so quick. Were they rushed or experimental? were safety steps missed. the short answer is NO, the following factors enabled acceleration of vaccine production

1. Funding- Gvmts and funding bodies joined forces to remove financial obstacles. 2. Volunteers- Thousands of people volunteered in clinical trials so there was no difficulties in recruiting 3. Science- advances in vaccine technology built over years of research ......

4. Collaboration- Scientists, doctors, ethics boards, manufactures, regulatory agencies all came together to work harder and faster
5. Manufacture- Large scale manufacturing occurred in parallel with clinical trials

Vaccines are safe. They do not affect one's ability to reproduce. They do not change one's DNA, They do not contain controversial substances, serious side effects are not expected @Erick25603176

Expected side effects include Pain, Redness, Swelling, Tiredness, Headache, Muscle pain, Chills, Fever, Nausea. However these are expected to be mild and a person usually recover within 3 days even without taking any medication

There has been some misinformation spreading around saying that people with co-morbidities like hypertension, diabetes, cancer etc. and the elderly cannot be vaccinated. This is wrong, these are the people more susceptible to severe covid disease and need the vaccine most

Thank you very much everyone who interacted with me today. I will end here for today. Will stick around for an hour or so to answer questions

Remember stay safe, mask up, avoid crowds and most importantly get vaccinated!