JKUAT College of Health Sciences launches ‘Victoria Pediatrics Case Book’

‘If it is not documented, it is not done.’ Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology College of Health Sciences celebrated an achievement on Thursday 29th July 2021, a book, ‘Victoria Pediatrics Case book’ authored by senior lecturers in the department of Child Health and Pediatrics.

‘Victoria Pediatrics Case Book’ is written by two principal authors, Dr. Patrick M. Mburugu and Dr. Justus M. Simba, and co-authored by nine others, all of whom have been students from the School of Medicine, JKUAT.

The book, the first of its kind in the JKUAT College of Health Sciences, presents practical scenarios of Pediatrics and Child Healthcare relevant to the African Setting.

Speaking during the launch, Dr. Patrick M. Mburugu acknowledged the support provided by the JKUAT Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Victoria Wambui Ngumi, and the deliberate efforts of everyone who drained their energy to bring the book to actuality. He asserted the book will go a long way in improving Pediatrics Practice globally. “I came across a well-written Pediatrics book while at the University of Pennsylvania, in the USA and this motivated me to write the book. The book contains local cases that we have seen in our teaching hospitals and will be an excellent reference material for the faculty and medical practitioners,” he said.

Explaining the title of the book ‘Victoria Pediatrics Case Book’, Dr. Justus M. Simba said that the reason they chose the title is, they wanted a name that will remind them of Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, and so they titled the book with the name of the JKUAT Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Victoria Wambui Ngumi.

The Chief Guest, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Victoria Wambui Ngumi, expressed her gladness for the commendable achievement. She reinforced that the book will be of great help to students. ‘I am confident that the book will facilitate and aid learning in Child Health and Pediatrics… the book will further foster the growth of students in the pediatrics field and empower them to become exemplary doctors,’ she pointed out. She also passed her gratitude to the principal authors for having involved the students in the authorship.

Also in attendance was Dr. Patrick Nyaga, a chief medical officer at Kiambu County Health and a consultant surgeon. Dr. Nyaga acknowledged the good job by the JKUAT College of Health Sciences in producing quality medical practitioners. “We have seen students and doctors coming from here and we can attest as Kiambu County Health that the confidence of referring students to the JKUAT College of Health Sciences has grown over the years,” he acknowledged. On behalf of Kiambu County Health, he also pledged support in marketing and buying publications coming from the university.

‘Victoria Pediatrics Case Book’ is a 300 pages- book, published by Zion Publishers and going for Kshs2650/=

By Dianne Patience