Creating Medics to Cope with Tomorrow's World
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17 SUNDAY MAIL • July 30, 2017 special report Higher Education Creating medics to cope with tomorrow’s world The three medical schools in Cyprus are all The University of Nicosia’s cadaver room unique, and after visiting them Annette Chrysostomou is reassured that if she meets a doctor who studied at one in the future she will likely be in capable hands HEY have been a ditional six-year undergrad- “We submitted the fi rst long time in the mak- uate-entry degree, a four- application for a medical ing but Cyprus’ three year graduate-entry British school on November 30, Tmedical schools, al- medical degree offered by 1997, that’s when our ef- ready turning out gradu- St George’s University of fort began,” the school’s ates, with their robots and London through a franchise Executive Dean Andreas virtual cadavers, are offering agreement, a Master in Charalambous said. “We an education to be proud of. Family Medicine and a PhD. began working on the set- Students at all three institu- The fi rst cohort of medical up and started by offering a tions will be well prepared students graduated in 2015, pre-medicine programme in before they treat an actual as the four-year-programme 1998.” The agreement with patient due to equipment has been offered since St George’s was signed in at their disposal and the 2011. By now three classes 2010. teaching methods which are of graduates from the St Unlike the six-year Univer- state-of-the-art hospitals in scenario or case history that next time they meet. geared towards a medical George’s programme are al- sity of Nicosia programme, the United States, Israel or they explore with the aid of During the fi rst two years career with life-long learn- ready practicing as doctors the four-year course is of- Cyprus. a tutor. The tutor does not students are also placed in ing as a big part of it. across the world. The six- fered for graduate students. The principal learning act as a teacher, but as a clinics and hospitals where The University of Nicosia’s year degree was added in For the fi rst two years, the method in Years 1 and 2 facilitator who guides stu- they observe and interact medical school is the only 2014 so will not see its fi rst students, who get a degree is problem based learn- dents through a scenario. with patients, using the institution to offer more graduates until 2020. from the UK university, ing (PBL), under which During these meetings, the school’s translators when than one medical degree in The idea of starting a med- study in Cyprus. For the last students are divided into students form learning ob- necessary. Cyprus. In fact it offers four ical school in Cyprus was in two years of clinical train- groups of eight and pre- jectives to which they have programmes of study, a tra- the making for a long time. ing, they have a choice of sented each week with a to fi nd the answers by the TURN TO PAGE 18 18 HigherEducation July 30, 2017 • SUNDAY MAIL Creating medics for tomorrow’s world continued rom page 17 now has students who will The six-year MD programme start year fi ve after the sum- also features clinical training mer. during the last two years. Stu- As in the University of Nico- dents need to pass the United sia, teaching is innovative. States Medical License Ex- Gone are the days of lengthy amination (USMLE) in their lectures aimed at maximum fourth year to progress to knowledge. clinical training at hospitals. “Knowledge becomes obso- University of Cyprus This is done voluntarily by the lete every seven years, a medi- medical clinical skills lab school to ensure the standard cal career is constant learn- is high. ing, so we teach our students The postgraduate pro- how to learn,” Dean Georgios gramme in Family Medicine Petrikkos said. “There are is aimed at doctors who want students who have a memory to specialise in Family Medi- resembling a library, but don’t cine and play a key role in the know how to treat a patient. country’s new national health You also need practice.” system. Degrees are awarded Lecturers are there mainly concurrently by the Universi- to introduce topics, which are birth’ in four different ways to a university in other parts of ty of Nicosia and St George’s. then explored through videos, a plastic doll, also a robot, so the world. Several laboratories feature teamwork about problem- students can practice how to 117 students from Cyprus the latest technology and related cases, the internet, deliver a baby in a natural way and Greece are currently en- equipment, and there is also visual computer programmes or by Caesarean section. rolled at the University of Cy- a clinical skills area that re- and others. Not only can the pregnant prus’ medical school in which, sembles a hospital ward. Most The way the programme is robot develop a fever of up unlike the other two institu- unusual in Cyprus is perhaps taught is guided by the Lau- to 42C, but she also responds tions in Nicosia, the language the anatomy room, where the reate Group of which the uni- to basic drugs. Naturally she of instruction is Greek. doctors-to-be have access to versity is part and which has also breathes and blinks her “We aim for 30 to 35 students cadavers in an environment more than 28 medical schools eyes as soon as she ‘wakes up’. per year as we think this is where the entire volume of air around the world which test- There is also a six-bed ‘hos- enough for Cyprus and they is changed every fi ve minutes. ed the best model of educa- pital ward’ complete with a can make good use of our fa- One of the Medical School’s tion. real ultrasound, another fea- cilities,” Medical School Coor- social responsibility initia- There are no corpses at this ture which prepares the stu- dinator Theodoti Hadjivasil- tives is operating a mobile university, but there are sev- dents in the fi rst three years iou explained. The pregnancy simulator at the European University of clinic, staffed by students In October 2016 the fourth Cyprus and (below) baby simulators in the medical school under the supervision of doc- year students commenced tors, which travels around the their clinical practice in Cy- country twice a month offer- Not only can the pregnant robot prus’ public hospitals, Nicosia ing free diagnostic tests and general hospital, Archbishop examinations to people in develop a fever of up to 42C, but Makarios III hospital, as well need, including residents in as in the Bank of Cyprus on- remote areas, senior citizens cology centre. and refugees. “In addition she also responds to basic drugs From 2018 the school is medical students raise aware- planning to also offer the pro- ness among teenagers on spe- gramme in English to attract cifi c health issues like eating eral robots or, as Petrikkos for the last three, the clinical students from other coun- disorders, sex education and says, “simulators similar to years. tries. drugs,” Director of Commu- those used when you learn Students have access to pri- As of September 2016, the nications George Sycallides how to fl y.” vate clinics and the state-run Medical School is housed at said. “This way we give back There are four simulators: hospital in Nicosia but the the Shakolas Educational to society and the students a man, a woman, a baby and school mainly works with the Center for Clinical Medicine, get hands-on experience.” a pregnant woman. They can Larnaca general hospital. along with its clinical labora- At the moment, more than be programmed to have a As the programme is in Eng- tories, the anatomy laborato- comprised of two years of in- after a recommendation by 530 students from 58 coun- huge number of medical con- lish and therefore attracts ries and the Centre of Molecu- terconnected studies in basic the committee. tries are enrolled in the Medi- ditions, and students can use mostly foreign students from lar Medicine Research Centre. medical and clinical sciences On the tables, the surface cal School, 95 per cent of them from day one to meas- Europe and other countries, The building houses an am- including the study and anal- of which show a computer whom are from abroad. 120 ure blood pressure for exam- students have to take free phitheatre of 350 places. ysis of behaviour and three screen, users can visual- full-time staff are on the pay ple. Greek lessons so that they A new building, the Nicos K years of clinical studies form ise anatomy exactly as they roll at the school as are 280 “Unlike the students who are able to communicate with Shakolas Medical School and the last phase. would on a fresh cadaver. In- part-time staff. usually have a similar blood real life patients by year 4. Health Sciences Building is Some academic staff already dividual structures are recon- The European Universi- pressure when they measure To ensure that the students expected to be completed by support the students who are structed in accurate 3D. The ty Cyprus not only awards each other we can programme have the broadest education 2021 with a total budget of €15 training in the hospitals but tables allow for a learning be- a medical degree, but will a wide range,” chemist An- possible the summer is also million.