According to the WHO over 4 billion people globally lack access to diagnostic imaging, with likely more than 5 billion lacking access to Interventional Radiology (IR). As of 2023, there are no formally trained IR physicians in Rwanda for a population of 15 million, leaving a population equivalent to that of Pennsylvania without access to a broad range of life-saving treatments.
Over the past seven years, Road2IR has initiated East Africa’s first IR training program in Tanzania. Africa’s first Master of Science in IR curriculum at Muhimbili University in Dar es Salaam was officially announced in October 2019 ( https://medicine.yale.edu/news-article/yales-tanzania-interventional-radiology-initiative-approved-for-msc-program/ ), which gives testament to the rapid progression of the training program. An overview of the program was published in the Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology in 2019 ( https://www.jvir.org/article/S1051-0443(19)30687-6/pdf ). In 2021 the first class of three fellows graduated, which was followed by graduation of 7 fellows and 3 fellows in 2022 and 2023 respectively. By leveraging experience from Tanzania, Road2IR intends to replicate the proven Tanzania IR training model in Rwanda through regional and international collaboration. The model was implemented at King Faisal Hospital in Kigali in 2024 and is ongoing, requiring training support from visiting faculty Interventional Radiologists on an ongoing basis.
While this program most immediately serves the 15 million people living in Rwanda, training IR physicians locally will have regional impact. This is apparent from the successful expansion of IR services from Tanzania to both Uganda and Rwanda in the last three years. Many African nations and their people stand to benefit directly from the availability of neighboring Interventional Radiology services and from the promise of expansion into their own nation. With continued success, Road2IR’s goal is to eventually serve the entire population of sub-Saharan Africa.
The expected impact of this project is profound, with the ultimate promise of offering the highest level of Interventional Radiology services to billions of underserved people across all of sub-Saharan Africa. In the more immediate term, the provision of IR services to Rwandan’s in critical need will be life changing for recipients of this care, but the impact of training local Rwandan physicians in these procedures will result in long term sustainability, the impact of which is unmeasurable. I am called to do my part to support and expand these efforts and contribute to building IR services in Africa, potentially reaching over one billion people who currently have no access to these important treatments.
This trip was to provided educational and operational support to the Interventional Radiology Fellowship training program in Rwanda. Currently this program operates with 2 fellows, 1 Attending, and a single cathlab. Our participation was sponsored by Road2IR with support from Doximity Foundation, and enabled our small team of one physician, one nurse and one IR Rad Tech to performed didactic and clinical education in Interventional Radiology as well as to support operational, research, and other educational objectives for this program. It was a tremendous learning experience for everyone involved and the compassion and competence of the Interventional Radiologists in Rwanda was on full display!
