The absence of epidemiological studies published online is a major problem in our country. In the medical field, these data guide us on prevention strategies to improve the health of populations. Despite everything, we still observe the non-centralization of this crucial data which should worry our decision-makers.
One afternoon in February, we are in the middle of class in the medical school. The professor introduces us to a new chapter on a common pathology in Burundi. The course outline, introduction, definition, epidemiology, etc. On this last point, the professor, saddened, shares data from France with us, due to the lack of publication of studies carried out on Burundian soil. However, no student comments. It’s always been the same refrain since our early days at university.
A real problem
The lack of national figures on disease prevalence is a worrying situation. On this subject, our teacher explains: “We mainly use data from France since we are in a French-speaking country. There are some epidemiological studies that we find in theses which were carried out in some reference hospitals, but unfortunately, they have not been published. »
The young student in me wonders what the point of spending a whole year doing research for a thesis that will not ultimately be published online. I remember a few months earlier, when we began research work in class, we always ran into the same problem: the lack of national data. It should be said that in all fields, in this case medicine, the lack of figures is very disabling. A quick look at Google Scholar to note that there is very little data from Burundi on the prevalence of several diseases. This represents a hindrance during research work in our university curriculum.
Some food for thought
Why are epidemiological studies essential in the field of health? Epidemiology studies the health problems of a given population, looking for factors that influence the appearance and distribution of diseases. Of course, references from other countries may also be applicable here. But a national survey is necessary to assess the state of health of a given population.
According to Jacques Raimondeau in the public health test, epidemiology is decisive for the definition of actions intended to improve the health of populations. In addition, she is interested in measuring the effectiveness of health actions carried out. Hence the extreme importance of organizing and collecting credible and quality data in order to centralize it.
Developed countries have made major progress in health and in research work in particular, hence we refer to their studies. Furthermore, they understood the interest of research beyond modern medicine. Burundi has no shortage of reports or evaluations within the various programs, but these studies are not open to the general public. On the other hand, is research widely funded to produce quality data? Does the country’s context allow for a good emergence of research work? Is public health, in other words promotional medicine, considered as much as curative medicine? So many questions addressed to our decision-makers which remain unanswered.
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2024-03-11 09:51:49