On the 26th of May UZCHS held an induction ceremony for its second cohort PERFECT trainees. The new cohort consists of 14 junior faculty trainees drawn from the various departments in the UZCHS including Medicine, Surgery, and Pediatrics, Dentistry, and Occupational health, Obstetrics and Gynecology, among others. The induction ceremony was held to help the new cohort develop a deeper understanding of the programme goals and objectives as well as service delivery mechanisms or methodologies. Speakers at this colorful event include the Programme Director, Prof J.Hakim, the Dean of UZCHS, Prof MM. Chidzonga, MR A. Matsika the Training Coordinator.
All these welcomed the new cohort and emphasized the need for the trainees to commit themselves to this research capacity building programme in order to enhance their research knowledge and skills. The event was attended by first cohort trainees, PERFECT Secretariat, facilitators, mentors, members of the Steering Committee and Training Advisory Board.
The PERFECT Programme (2015-2020) is aimed at strengthening UZCHS junior faculty capacity to engage in independent and collaborative research. This is done through rigorous training in research methodology, research ethics and good clinical practice, and practical research mentorship from seasoned medical researchers locally and abroad. The first cohort of the trainees with 11 members was recruited in 2016. The combined total number of trainees recruited so far now stands at 25. An additional 8 trainees will be recruited in 2017 to bring the cumulative total of trainees to 33.