Impact of the Sudan conflict on medical education and training

Abdullah Mohammed Sayyed Satti¹, Rawan Saeed Mohamed Saeed², Nizar Ibrahim Mohammed Yaqoub¹, Raghda Muhammed Ali Ibrahim¹, Mumen Abdalazim Dafallah³

¹MBBS, Faculty of Medicine, University of Gezira, Wad Medani, Gezira state, Sudan

²Medical student, Faculty of Medicine, University of Gezira, Wad Medani, Gezira state, Sudan

³Internal Medicine Resident, Sudan Medical Specialization Board, Wad Medani, Gezira state, Sudan

Email: Abdullah Mohammed Sayyed Satti (Abdallahsatti27499@gmail.com)

Date submitted: 9-June-2024

This is an open access journal, and articles are distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-Share Alike 4.0 License, which allows others to remix, tweak, and build upon the work non-commercially, as long as appropriate credit is given and the new creations are licensed under the identical terms.

Citation: Mohammed Sayyed A, Saeed Mohamed Saeed R, Ibrahim Mohammed Yaqoub I, Muhammed Ali Ibrahim R, Agrawal M, Abdalazim Dafallah M. Impact of the Sudan conflict on medical education and training. Educ Health 2024;37:186-187.

Online access: www.educationforhealthjournal.org
DOI: 10.62694/efh.2024.111

Published by The Network: Towards Unity for Health

A war driven by a thirst for power has been draining Sudan since April 2023, destroying its infrastructure, resources, and landmarks. The monstrous war weapons and flying bullets ended nearly 15,000 lives and scared over 6.6 million civilians out of the safety of their homes and into the largest displacement crisis in the world.¹

The disruption of medical education has had significant consequences. Closure of medical schools and universities has interrupted academic schedules, delaying examinations and graduations, creating uncertainty and anxiety among students. Additionally, the lack of access to essential resources and facilities has hindered proper training for resident doctors and recent graduates. Practical experiences, crucial for medical education, have been particularly affected. Students are missing out on hands-on learning opportunities, vital for their professional development. These disruptions not only impact the immediate progress of current students but also have long-term implications for the medical field, potentially leading to a shortage of well-trained healthcare professionals in the future.

Sudan's healthcare system has been deteriorating since the beginning of the conflict in April 2023, with 68% of hospitals currently shuttered and others suffering from a lack of healthcare staff and equipment, and damage to medication stockpiles.² Most of Sudan's healthcare services are based in the capital Khartoum. Consequently, safe access to less than 20% of healthcare facilities is currently available as the capital was the first site to be attacked in the ongoing conflict.³ With time, the conflict zone widened, and the situation has become extremely difficult.

The Sudanese Medical Council held the last permanent registration exam, needed to obtain a license to practice medicine unsupervised, in April 2023.⁴ Therefore, thousands of recent graduate doctors who completed their internship program are faced with an uncertain fate, despite all efforts to overcome this.

The ongoing conflict contributes significantly to psychological unease among Sudanese people generally, and Sudanese medical students specifically. Medical students suffer the consequences of the upheaval of their academic journey and experience the unpredictability of its completion. Those able to currently gain an education constantly fear destabilization, and express concern regarding the quality of their education. Such circumstances induce high levels of anxiety and stress which may be difficult to manage. Other psychological effects of the war include depression and post-traumatic stress disorder due to exposure to graphic sites. Medical students may experience a sense of guilt, helplessness and self-pity as they lack the necessary resources, knowledge and experience to help those in need.

We propose immediate actions to safeguard educational institutions and support students during these challenging times in Sudan. We urgently appeal to local and international organizations to prioritize the safety of medical schools in the country. Swift measures are essential to prevent further attacks on medical schools. Given that 58.6% of medical faculties within conflict areas have been attacked,⁵ we recommend establishing supporting programs to adapting changes, and to facilitate the educational process. Online resources and collaborative initiatives are essential to sustain medical education during these challenging times. Together, we can ensure medical education continues to thrive—even in the face of adversity.

2. Hemmeda L, Ahmed AS, Omer M. Sudan’s armed rivalry: A comment on the vulnerable healthcare system catastrophe. Health Science Reports. Aug 22, 6(8):e1517. Retrieved September 14, 2023 from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10444969/

5. Abdallah E, Amna Khairy, Osman S, Musab Babiker Haga, Hashim S, Abbu M, et al. War and education: the attacks on medical schools amidst ongoing armed conflict, Sudan 2023. Conflict and health. 2024 Mar 29; 18(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13031-024-00584-7

Letter to the Editor

Impact of the Sudan conflict on medical education and training