First national IMCI pre-service education workshop for medical and nursing schools

Egypt, a country which pioneered and led efforts to introduce IMCI (Integrated Management of Child Health) into pre-service education since 1998, took another major step with this national workshop to expand the initiative not only to other medical schools but also to nursing schools. The 44 participants in the workshop included representatives from Paediatrics, Family Medicine and Community Medicine Departments of 15 medical schools—eight of which already exposed to IMCI—, seven nursing schools, the Supreme Council of Higher Education, the Ministry of Health and Population (MOHP) and the WHO Regional Office. The main objectives of the workshop were to review the IMCI pre-service education experience in Egypt to date, also in light of the recommendations made by the pre-service training working group during the Second IMCI Programme Review in January 2007, establish a national IMCI pre-service education training committee to coordinate all efforts, strengthen coordination with MOHP and develop plans for expansion and to sustain the initiative.