Centre Hospitalier de l'Ordre de Malte à Dakar
Sherwood Hospital Information System (HIS) is transforming healthcare in the Medicine department of the Centre Hospitalier de l'Ordre de Malte (CHOM) in Dakar, Senegal. Specifically, Sherwood HIS is being used to help manage the leprology and dermatology clinics and to provide more accurate and reliable clinical indicators.
CHOM was founded in 1967 in Dakar by the French Order of Malta as a center specializing in the treatment of leprosy in Senegal, West Africa. Formerly known as the Institute of Applied Leprology (ILAD), CHOM has played a key role in the fight against leprosy in the country for more than 50 years. Despite a reduction in leprosy cases in recent years, between 250 and 300 new cases of leprosy are diagnosed each year in Senegal, although it is believed that this figure could be higher due to under-diagnosis. New cases of leprosy must be reported, as leprosy is a notifiable disease. Hence the importance of reliable, real-time clinical indicators for accurate knowledge of health needs. In the featured story, Paul Michel SARR, Major, Department of Medicine, explains how Sherwood HIS is helping to improve their day-to-day work.
Leprosy is an infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium leprae. The disease is highly contagious via the airborne route, but infectivity is rapidly reduced 48 hours after treatment. Leprosy is a treatable and curable disease. Combination antibiotic treatment can put patients into complete remission, but the earlier treatment is started, the better the results. Depending on the case, treatment can last from 6 to 12 months and is given at no cost to patients, as it has been covered by WHO since 1982. Given the long duration of the therapies, one of the biggest challenges is medication compliance. This is why the Department of Medicine organizes monthly outreach clinics or mission "PIRP" (Prévention des Invalidités et Réadaptation Physique) in the regions of Senegal, to facilitate access to healthcare and help patients comply with treatment.
"Sherwood is helping us to have reliable clinical indicators and make our weekly reports on time"
Paul SARR, Department of Medicine, Centre Hospitaliere de l'Ordre de Malta, Dakar
The CHOM team uses Sherwood HIS on their smartphones to create and modify medical records on the go and easily access and track patient information. . If leprosy is detected late, dermatological problems become neurological and lead to severe and disabling sequelae (sensorimotor paralysis, risk of blindness, amputation...). These mutilations or paralysis require surgical interventions, physical rehabilitation and equipment that, for the moment, only CHOM can provide in Senegal.
In the last two decades, and especially since 2011, CHOM has also become a reference center for paediatric and adult orthopaedic surgery in Senegal. With almost 1000 surgical interventions per year and state-of-the-art surgical facilities, the center is one of the few in West and Central Africa to perform complex orthopaedic operations, such as spine surgery for scoliosis, knee and hip prosthesis surgery, diagnostic and surgical arthroscopy, complex hand surgery, etc. Watch the video to learn more about the work CHOM is doing today.