ISN Educational Ambassadors lend support to Kenya’s nurses
In September, nurses Marie Richards and Thandiwe Ngcobo visited several hospitals in Kenya, supporting the local medical community with their kidney care challenges.
As part of the ISN Educational Ambassadors Program, their visit focused on teaching about the important issues surrounding hemodialysis fistulas and vascular access as well as kidney transplantation.
They started off by heading to the Kenyatta National Hospital, the main referral hospital in the country, where they were shown around by senior nurse Nancy Wangombe, who is currently president of the Kenya Nephrology Nurses Association. They were able to evaluate a public set-up and identify their needs of the unit.
Later on, they travelled to Mombasa to participate in the workshop on improving the outcomes of kidney transplantation.
Professor Richards spoke about identifying learning gaps in nephrology nursing in Kenya and the Eastern Africa region. Professor Ngcobo gave a talk on minimizing CRBSI-bedside practical innovations.
In parallel, during the nursing workshop, they discussed the practical aspects of nephrology nursing in the 21st century. Next stop was the hemodialysis units at Mombasa Dialysis Center and Coast General Hospital, where they visited wards and provided advice.
Thandiwe Ngcobo, based at the SEHA Dialysis Services in Abu Dhabi, has over 20 years of experience in academic, state, military and private hospital areas, leading a successful SDS Vascular Access Service since June 2013.
As Director of Education and Chief Nursing Officer at SEHA Dialysis Services, Marie Richards set up the first Nursing Masters course in Abu Dhabi in collaboration with international partner to facilitate sustainability of expert renal nursing workforce.
Discover the ISN Educational Ambassador Program, HERE.
