It was a beautiful sunny day as SANA’s team returned to Aabdeh today for a medical/educational mission with midwifery student at the Lebanese University.

It was a busy clinic day with patients who ranged in age between 17 and 39 years. Of those, a fifth were on their first pregnancy. SANA carried out full evaluations on the patients and they were all scanned by trainee Anwar under the guidance of SANA’s Reem S. Abu-Rustum. Anwar had spent several hours working on SANA’s simulator and she demonstrated comfort in scanning the patients, ascertaining anatomy and confirming placental location.  She redated 21% of the patients seen.

As always, MSF’s midwife Zeinab was with SANA’s team ensuring a most organized work day. She was also instrumental in making all the necessary arrangements and follow ups for the patients as needed.

At the end of another rewarding day, the team headed back home and plans were made for the next visit with MSF…

On an atypical cold rainy Spring day, SANA’s team returned back to Kfaribnine for a  medical/educational mission. Accompanying SANA was Dr. Esperance El Awad, a second year Ob/Gyn resident at the Lebanese University.

The day commenced with an educational session where SANA’s Reem S. Abu-Rustum discussed several issues pertaining to reproductive health with the patients. The main focus was what the constituents of a healthy diet in pregnancy are,  how much weight gain is normal and what to avoid.

Following the session, SANA’s team carried out full assessments on the patients inclusive of sonographic evaluation. Dr. Esperance skillfully scanned the patients under the guidance of SANA’s Reem S. Abu-Rustum. She displayed comfort and confidence in carrying out 6-step approach. She also was able to obtain all required biometric measurements in the proper planes.

Today’s patients ranged in age between 16 to 47 years. Most were in the 2nd to 9th month of pregnancy, 29% were  on their first pregnancy, 21% were on pregnancy 4 or more and 43% had had no prenatal care or a maximum of 1 prenatal visit thus far. SANA redated 36% of the patients seen.

SANA wishes to thank Levant Alie Houses SAL and Mr. Dory Mansour for providing all nutritional supplements today.

And at the end of another rewarding day, SANA made plans for the next visit to Kfaribnine and the team headed back home…

It is with much excitement that today, SANA and Hopital Aboujaoude commenced the first Resident Training Course in Ob/Gyn Ultrasound in cooperation with ISUOG, and structured in accordance with ISUOG Basic Training Guidelines (BT). This is the first such endeavor in Lebanon and shall hopefully pave the way to a National Standardized Curriculum in Ob/Gyn Ultrasound Training for our residents here in Lebanon.

This has been the result of rigorous work and planning over the past 10 months between our Lebanon team and ISUOG. We have 10 junior residents, all in their first 2 years of residency, from both Ob/Gyn and Radiology residency programs at the Lebanese University and the University of Balamand, who have been selected for our “pilot” course.

Over the course of 2017, there shall be monthly sessions of didactic as well as simulation-based training with the core faculty: Drs. Aboujaoude, Abu-Rustum, Daou and Helou. The residents have an intensive course planned with both a theoretical and a practical component. There shall be online learning, log book up-keep and hands-on training with strict adherence to pre-set metrics to ensure competency requirements of the submitted images. Upon successful completion of all requirements, the residents shall receive certification.

The day started with a welcome by Dr. Aboujaoude. Then Dr. Abu-Rustum introduced ISUOG BT and the details of the course. The residents each received a comprehensive manual for the course. There was a demonstration on the SonoSim simulator and a schedule was formulated for the residents to spend time on the simulator.

Subsequently, the trainees filled a pre-course survey and quiz. Then, 4 videos of ISUOG BT lectures were shown and discussed given by Drs. Bilardo, Eggebo, Papageorghiou and Tabor.

Indeed, it was a most stimulating session and so well received by the trainees. The future is most exciting!

SANA wishes to thank Hopital Aboujaoude for always giving the green light to any new project, our trainees for believing in this endeavor, and last but not least ISUOG for the leadership and futuristic vision and for always being an endless source of inspiration…