Rwanda IR Program

RWANDA- Interventional Radiology

Interventional Radiology

Interventional Radiology (IR) is a medical field, which performs minimally invasive procedures and treatments under image guidance, including ultrasound, fluoroscopy, and computed tomography (CT). IR can diagnose and treat a broad range of diseases, including cancer, infection, vascular disease, uterine fibroids, and trauma.

Interventional Radiologists are super-specialists that have completed four years of training in Diagnostic Radiology, followed by two years of fellowship training in IR.  Interventional Radiologists work as part of a team of highly trained healthcare professionals, which include Nurses and Technologists.

The Rwanda Ministry of Health, through its Human Resource for Health secretariat, is coordinating efforts to implement an Interventional Radiology training program in Rwanda in partnership with Emory University. This program will also be affiliated with the Road2IR consortium. The fellowship program will be administered by the College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Rwanda in partnership with its affiliated teaching hospitals, such as the King Faisal Hospital, Rwanda Military Hospital and Kigali University Teaching Hospital.

   

Left: Dr. Azza Naif and Dr. Mamadou Sanogo collaborating on an IR case 

Right: Dr. Ziad and Dr. Mamadou Sanogo performing vascular access for an IR procedure

IR Procedures and Treatments 

There are countless minimally invasive procedures and treatments that can be performed by Interventional Radiologists. Below is a short list of possible procedures and treatments. 

  • Abscess drain placement
  • Biliary drain placement and biliary stenting
  • Central venous access catheters including tunnelled hemodialysis catheters
  • Interventional oncology
    • Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE)
    • Radiofrequency ablation (RFA)
  • Core needle biopsy of lung, liver, kidney and other organs
  • Nephrostomy tube placement
  • Splenic artery embolization
  • Uterine fibroid embolization

 

Helpful links

Society of Interventional Radiology: https://www.sirweb.org/ 

Facebook: https://facebook.com/road2IR

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/road2ir

Twitter: https://twitter.com/road2ir

Youtube: https://youtu.be/JLT0wPzXTa0

East Africa Health Summit presentation: https://youtu.be/PwD2j8AHUYo

Emory video: https://youtu.be/wjEtuXRnld4

JVIR article: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1051044319306876

 

Medical Student Electives

We encourage interested medical students to apply for an elective in interventional radiology so that they can witness the variety of procedures performed and gain insight into the essential clinical role of IR.  In advance of the program start, there are currently educational and research opportunities. We will provide further details once available. 

 

Contact

For further information, please contact Dr. Ivan Rukundo: ivanruk7@gmail.com  

Cell Phone: + (250) 788-492-133