Dr. Tasang Andrew: Obstetrician Gynecologist, lecturer at Medical School, of the University of Buea

“When you leave medical school in Cameroon you earn just 400 dollars per month”

Doctor Tasang Andrew is one of those Cameroonian medical practitioners with a wide range of experiences that have seen him working across the National Triangle called Cameroon, in Africa as well as in Europe through the participation in medical rendezvous amongst other things. Now having cruised through a spicy medical career gathering a lot of national, African and European experience, the seasoned medical practitioner now teaches at the Medical School of the University of Buea.

Dr. Tasang Andrew

 That aside, he also runs a Non Governmental Organisation; the Atlantic Medical Foundation at Mutengene within the Tiko Municipality in Fako Division. The main aim of running this outfit as he puts it is make health services available to needy Cameroons at affordable rates.

This self effacing personality was born in Bamenda the Capital city of the North West Region of Cameroon and grew up in the neighborhood of Sonac Street in this same city. He went to primary school in Bamenda and Yaounde. Doctor Tasang eventually went to secondary school in Yaounde and later on went to Medical School at the University of Yaounde known as CUSS. After graduating in 1991 his rich medical career began with a posting to Djoum in the Dja and Lobo Division as the District Medical Officer for the Djoum District. The strategic nature of Djoum is further highlighted he said by the fact that the town is located at the frontiers with the Republic of Gabon and Equatorial Guinea. From Djoum, Dr. Tasang was transferred to Fontem in the Lebialem Division as the Chief Medical Officer and District Medical Officer. After working there for a couple of years, he was transferred to Tiko where he presently resides as the Director of the Tiko District Hospital Tiko and at the same time the District Medical Officer. This reporter carried out an elaborate interview with this medical person and the entire interview is published below.

Records show that you’ve had a reasonable international experience as a medical Doctor. Tell us about it.

I left Cameroon for Belgium to write an International Examination from which I emerged as the best of all who took part in this exam. We Cameroonians have an advantage that we don’t seem to always take advantage of. In Belgium only French is spoken so everything was done in French. However, a second language was needed and indicated that English was my second language. When we had finished the written part, the conductors of the examination on opening my file saw that my second language was English. Well in a bid to boost the image of my country I told them that ours was a bilingual country. I was recruited to work and my work was accompanied by a lot of training among which were Emergency Surgery, Emergency Obstetrics and Gynecology and Emergency Medicine. I was later sent to Burundi as Director of Medecins Sans Frontiers in the Karosi Region where I was the only Doctor. Everybody ran away during the crises including three doctors from Switzerland whom I replaced. I gained a lot of experience working in Burundi with Medecins Sans Frontiers.

 

You have gone into private practice and you are trying to put in your own contribution after gathering all this experience to better the health landscape of Cameroon. How has the adventure been in the private sector?

There is no easy journey and everybody should pick up his courage. If you are afraid to climb up the mountain you will not know the treasures reserved for you there. I had to foot my journey bravely. This structure where we are; the Atlantic Medical Foundation is an NGO inspired by my experience out of the country. It is a full-fledged hospital. When I opened the NGO, I was again appointed as District Medical Officer in Nylon, Douala. From there I went and specialized and came back. Today I am a lecturer at the University of Buea teaching Obstetrics and Gynecology. I do this alongside the affairs of the NGO which I do with many others with whom I run the initiative.

As a nation builder in the health sector, what are the problems that you can identify in the health or medical sector?

I don’t know if I am radical if I were to say that our system is bankrupt. What we have now in Cameroon is not acceptable. The first reason is that there is poverty. You cannot imagine that people are sick and they can’t buy drugs for 2000 FCFA. There are people in Cameroon who cannot eat and when they come to Government Hospitals it is unbelievable. I call on the Government to institute some sort of social security system because what we are seeing is horrible. You certainly remember what happened in Douala with regards to the Monique Koumateke issue. Although the medical personnel had nothing to do with it, the base line is poverty. This lady had no Ante Natal Care because she was poor. I will like to propose something to the Government. In 2013 Cameroonians consumed 600 million liters of beer. If the Government were to tax even 3FCFA per bottle, it will give us more than 400 million FCFA and that alone will be able to change the health sector. People cannot come to the hospital and when they fall sick they turn to traditional medicine and herbs. Now there is a new trend. “Men of God” is the dominant thing at the moment but we know that most of them are tricksters. Many sick people because of the lack of means to treatment turn to these “Men of God” and end up dying. The Government should look into that sector.

How can a simple Cameroonian out there benefit from the facility that you run?

Atlantic Medical Foundation is self sustained but the prices are down to earth. We want to assist those who don't have. For the moment if any person out there or anywhere in the world want to help us, they are welcome. This may help the prices to further go down. And permit us to offer some services for free. 

How is your experience as a lecturer in the University of Buea?

It’s been wonderful. You know imparting knowledge to the young ones is just wonderful. I see a lot of passion, determination and patience as well. I think teaching is the best job. I am an Obstetrician Gynecologist so I belong to the Faculty of Surgery, Obstetrics and Gynecology.

How hopeful are you as far as the health sector in Cameroon is concerned?

The Government has a lot to do to improve on the health sector and there is a lot of injustice against health personnel in Cameroon. Look at our brothers the teachers. When they leave the Ecole Normale Superieur in Bambili, which is the GCE Advanced Levels plus three years, they work and go on retirement at 60. A Doctor has the Advanced Level and afterwards goes to school for seven years but goes on retirement at the age of 55. The worse thing is that if you have to go and specialize it’s at least four years so you go to school for 11 years after the A levels and go on retirement at the age of 55 years. There is gross injustice against the medical personnel in Cameroon. The Magistrates go on retirement at 70. Cameroon is the only country where we have more Medical Doctors practicing outside the country than inside. We are about 4000 Doctors in Cameroon but Cameroon has more doctors abroad. We have more doctors outside. I was tempted to remain but since I am a nation builder I decided to come back. I had a lot of opportunities. But OI thought it was better to come back to your country and build it. When you leave medical school in Cameroon you earn just 400 dollars per month which is just about 160.000 FCFA. This is scandalous and indeed an insult to the intellect. At the same time, you will see a Corporal or a Sergeant earning 250 to 300.000 FCFA per month with the First School Leaving Certificate. So in Cameroon a Sergeant or Corporal with just a First School Leaving Certificate earns more than a medical doctor. Where are we going to? Why have we changed the values of this country? This country wasn’t like this.

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