A serious shortfall was felt in the number of paediatricians with necessary training and qualificatons to serve as consultant paediatricians, teachers in child health and managers of child health programmes.
In response to this national need, MD in paediatrics was established as a post-Graduate academic programme at the Institute of Medicine in April 1997. Substantial support has been received from the Norwegian University more specifically from University of Bergen for this course.
Goal
The goal of the MD programme in paediatrics is to contribute to the improvement of child health status of the country by producing skilled child health specialists and to strengthen the human resources for child in Nepal.
Specific objectives: After passing through the programme successfully, a candidate will be able to:
- Diagnose and manage diseases of paediatric age group including paediatric emergencies independently;
- Function as a leader of a team providing secondary to tertiary level against preventable disorders of paediatric age group,
- Provide leadership in the design and implementation of preventive and promotive child health services in the community;
- Conceptualise, initiate and lead relevant research in the field of child health;
- Plan, implement and evaluate programmes for training of health workers in the process of learning related to child health;
- Advise the policy makers and administrators on the planning, implementation and evaluation of child health programmes.
Salient Features
Teaching/Learning Methods
The candidates will:
- Be full-time residents in the department of child health;
- Be responsible for the patients assigned to them for care under supervision of a consultant, who is a faculty member and a specialist in paediatrics;
- Make presentations on different cases, topics assigned to them, journal articles review every week by rotation and participate actively in the discussion;
- Be responsible for holding seminars and to take part in symposia under supervision of faculty members;
- Actively participate in the teaching, learning activities of undergraduate students;
- Render outpatient services;
- Participate in providing services in community based child health clinics;
- Work in neonatal, intensive care and other super speciality units by rotation;
- Gain learning experience by actively working in the community-based outreach child health clinics made by visiting countries for early detection, education and rehabilitation of disabled children;
- Conduct research in an area of interest under the guidance of faculty members assigned by the department and submit the thesis six months ahead of the final examination.
The candidates will rotate through the different postings.
Evaluation
The evaluation process will consist of formative and a summative evaluation before the candidate is certified as a doctor of medicine in paediatrics.
Eligibility
Eligibility Criteria
A medical graduate with MBBS or equivalent degree, registered appropriately with Nepal Medical Council and WHO has served at least for one year in an approved health institution after completion of internship.
The candidate will have to appear in the entrance examination conducted by the Institute of Medicine. Admission into the programme will be on the basis of merit determined by the entrance examination.