What is ECSACOP

East, Central and Southern Africa College of Physicians

ECSACOP is responding to the variations in postgraduate training structure and content within the region. The College has developed a new internal medicine curriculum that encompasses the skills and characteristics physicians need to care for the health of their communities.

The training curriculum will be delivered through an in-service, apprenticeship model in existing health facilities.

Through this approach, ECSACOP will harmonise internal medicine training across the region, establishing regional standards and ultimately improving health outcomes for countless patients.

Vision

Healthy communities through access to well-trained physicians

Mission

To improve standards of healthcare throughout the region by providing specialist training for physicians committed to lifelong learning

Our ambition

The East, Central and Southern Africa College of Physicians (ECSACOP) aims to improve access to well-trained physicians across the region by establishing a network of dedicated training centres and implementing an internationally recognised postgraduate medical qualiﬁcation.

The College will ultimately improve health outcomes for the region’s >200 million inhabitants, with a focus on expanding healthcare provision in centres serving the rural population.

“Health systems can only function with health workers; improving health service coverage and realizing the right to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health is dependent on their availability, accessibility, acceptability and quality.”

— WORLD HEALTH ORGANISATION.

WHAT WE DO

ECSACOP is a regional college (currently comprising Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe) that seeks to contribute to the resolution of manpower shortages of physicians.

ECSACOP is one of six constituent colleges of the ECSA College of Health Sciences which was established following a resolution passed at the 52nd Health Ministers Conference held in Harare, Zimbabwe 2010 (ECSA/HMC52/R9: Strengthening Partnerships for Health).

ECSACOP was officially inaugurated in 2015 and has thus far held two scientific and annual general meetings in Zimbabwe (2016) and Uganda (2017).

ECSACOP Award – the College awards Fellowship through instruction and examinations. Enrolled trainees participate in full-time instruction in approved training institutions.

The Fellowship (Part 1) examination leads to admission into the final part of training. The Fellowship (Final) examination leads to the qualification of Fellow of the East Central and Southern Africa College of Physicians, FCP (ECSA).

This qualification is recognition that the candidate has reached the level of knowledge and practice of internal medicine sufficient to practice independently at a consultant or specialist level.

ECSACOP Award

Fellowship location	Ecsacop accredited training sites
Type of Fellowship	Full-time
Year of Commencement	September 2018
Length of Fellowship	4 years
Award	Fellow of the East, Central and Southern Africa College of Physicians
Designation of Award	FCP (ECSA)

A NEW COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS

This is a critical, formative time for this fledgling and progressive College – a first for East, Central and Southern Africa, which is locally led and innovative in its approach. ECSACOP is specifically responding to the varying nature of postgraduate training within the ECSA countries, harmonising standards through the introduction of a common curriculum and teaching methodologies.

Allied to this, physicians tend to stay/practice where they train, and the vast majority train in large urban hubs. This means that rural centres tend to be understaffed and disadvantaged in terms of public health resource allocation, meaning patients often end up travelling large distances to access specialist care.

There is no other organisation focusing primarily on developing training centres serving rural populations in this way, and in doing so, increasing access to care for those most in need..

51

Life expectancy of a man in Central Africa.

50%

of births lack the attendance of a skilled health professional.

30%

of medical school faculty posts are vacant.

WHAT IS ECSACOP