Addressing Neurological Diseases: Creating Inpatient Services and Training Programs in Zambia

Addressing Neurological Diseases: Creating Inpatient Services and Training Programs in Zambia

Neurological diseases are a primary contributor to disability and mortality in Zambia, but the neurological workforce doesn’t match the burden. With only .002 neurologists per 100,000 people, individuals with neurological disorders often can’t receive the care they need while doctors are in such high demand and burdened by the immense workload that it becomes difficult to provide the care that is needed. A new neurology inpatient service and neurology training program are changing this problem. Join us for a conversation with Deanna Saylor, MD, MHS, as she discusses the most prevalent types of neurological disorders and gaps in care in Zambia, how the need for the program was identified, how the neurology program was built, why it is unique, and how it may change with the needs of the population in the future.

Deanna Saylor, MD '11, MHS '09, is a neuro-infectious diseases specialist, Assistant Professor of Neurology and Director of the Hopkins Global Neurology Program at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.  Saylor completed her undergraduate studies in chemistry and molecular genetics at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio and obtained her medical degree from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Masters in Health Sciences in Clinical Epidemiology from the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, Maryland.  She then completed an internship in internal medicine at the Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center followed by neurology residency and neuro-infectious diseases fellowship training at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. 

Her clinical and research interests include neurological complications of HIV, global health and neurology, neuroepidemiology, and improving the diagnosis and management of neurological conditions in resource-limited settings with few neurologists.  Much of her research is based in Sub-Saharan Africa, including projects in Kenya, Uganda, and Zambia.  Most recently, Saylor has been living and working full-time in Zambia since 2018 as Director of the first and only neurology post-graduate training program in Zambia.  She also leads the only inpatient neurology service in the country at the University Teaching Hospital, has helped launch Zambia’s first teleneurology service, and is a building a clinical research program focused on stroke and improving systems of neurological care in Zambia.