Sri Lanka

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Read Field Stories From Those who have been to Sri Lanka!

Locations :
Site: Ruhuna University Faculty of Medicine

Affiliation: Teaching Hospital at Karapitiya, Teaching Hospital at Mahamodera (Helmut Kohl Maternity Hospital)

Location: Karapitiya, Galle, Sri Lanka

Site Director: P.L Ariyananda, MD, PhD. Dean, Faculty of Medicine, Ruhuna University

Background:
Duke University School of Medicine and Ruhuna University Faculty of Medicine forged a research and education collaboration in early 2006. This collaboration initially encompasses epidemiologic and clinical research in Sri Lanka, and the option for Duke medical students to undertake clinical electives at two Ruhuna-affiliated tertiary care teaching hospitals. The Faculty of Medicine and teaching hospitals are located in Galle, a coastal city in the south of Sri Lanka renowned for its beaches and history. Galle (including one teaching hospital) was severely affected in the 2004 tsunami disaster. The Duke-Ruhuna collaboration will be initially facilitated by the generous support of the Duke Tsunami Relief Fund.

Clinical Opportunities: The 1400-bed Teaching Hospital at Karapitiya serves as the leading tertiary care facility for southwestern Sri Lanka. Annual admissions approach 120,000 with an average length of stay of four days. Duke students can undertake clinical electives in medicine, community and family medicine, pediatrics, surgery, orthopedics, ENT, neurosurgery, cardiothoracic surgery, urology, psychiatry, critical care or emergency medicine. The Teaching Hospital at Mahamodera is a tertiary care gynecological and maternity hospital that was severely damaged in the tsunami. It is currently being modernized and rebuilt to 850-bed capacity and will be re-named the Helmut Kohl Maternity Hospital. Duke students in Sri Lanka are also strongly encouraged to partake in Ruhuna University’s community health projects.

Research: Three collaborative research projects are being planned for 2006-7, viz, a study of in- and outpatient febrile illness at Ruhuna teaching hospital, a community survey of adolescent reproductive health and behaviors in the Galle District, and an epidemiological study of hospital admissions before and after the tsunami. These projects will be led by investigators at Duke and Ruhuna, and will have facilities for Ruhuna and Duke (MS3) medical student participation.

Investigators:

Duke:
Truls Ostbye, MD, PhD – Community and Family Medicine, Epidemiology

Christopher Woods, MD, MPH – Infectious Diseases

Ruhuna:

Nayana Fernando, MBBS – Community Health

Malek Goonawardena, MBBS – Obstetrics and Gynecology

Bilesha Perera, MBBS – Community Health

Thyagi Ponnamperuma, MBBS – Medicine

Field Stories from Sri Lanka:

Notes from Sri Lanka - 2006 By Krupal Shah