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The medical assistant is qualified to care for mostIprimary health
care needs,
including the more difficult situations tat the health
assistants and community health workers refer to him.
A vital part of
his work is to provide supervision and continuing on-thq@-job education
for the health assistants in his atoll.
The medical ass|stant is to be
a full time and fully occupied employee who would have Haily contacts
with each of the health assistants in his atoll and a] 5O daily radio
contact with the medical officer or medical doctor at
his
area.
Such
radio
contact would
e hospital of
provide consulthtion
management of difficult cases, continuing education
for
the
the medical
assistant, supervision of the work of the medical assistagt along with a
verification that he is on duty on a daily basis.
Dailyjradio contact
also provides a means of determination of need for and authorization of
routine transport or emergency evacuation for hospitaligation for any
patient needing such care.
This prevents unauthorized transports or
evacuations and over utlilization of hospital services
By placing the
final authority for transportation in the hands of the matical officers
at the hospital.
Medical assistants are also utilized to run the outpatient units of
the hospitals with consultation as needed by the medica! officers or
medical doctors.
The training of the medical assistant usually incfudes an entry
requirement of completion of high school followed by onel year of basic
science instruction and two years of practical clinical
hospitals and field clinics.
Instruction in
The recommended site of sufth training is
at the new campus of the University of the South Pacific
Which is being
established at the present time in Honiara, Solomon Is ¥ands with the
goal of providing mid level training in the areas of
education, and engineering.
Alternative training site
assistant program at the School of Medicine in Suva,
fmedical] care,
Js the medical
Aiji.
Another
alternative is to reinitiate the "medex" training or devélop a similar
training
program in
the Marshall
advantages/disadvantages
students
to
of
this
Islands.
must
be
The cost Jeffectiveness
weighed
already existing training programs
agtinst
sending
sponsowed by member
countries of the South Pacific Region that have experience] and knowledge
of specific health needs of the South Pacific Islands.
xf