Omar Abdihamid, Clinical Oncologist at Shabaha Cancer Centre and Clinical Oncology Specialist at Garissa Regional Cancer Centre, shared on LinkedIn:
”Fewer than 100 oncologists for 50 million Kenyans. So we asked final-year medical students.
Who is coming?
- 25% would consider oncology.
- 51% said maybe.
But the finding that stopped us: nothing we measured predicted career interest – not rotations, not workshops, not personal experience with cancer.
Exposure built competence. It did not build desire.
The top deterrents were emotional burden, patient suffering, and absent mentorship. A rotation shows you the suffering. It does not show you how anyone survives it.
I wrote a Substack post on the family. see below and subscribe if you enjoy reading similar articles.”
Title: Baseline knowledge, attitudes and perceptions on the oncology profession among final-year medical students in Kenya: a cross-sectional study
Authors: Mustafa Affey, Najma Mahamed Aden, Jamal Saman, Fatuma Affey, Abdirahman Maalim, Ibrahimrashid Mohamed Sheikh, Mohamedamin Abdullahi, Omar Abdihamid.
You can also read: ‘How One Doctor Helped Transform Cancer Care in New Zealand: Dr. Christopher Jackson‘
