Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

RCP keen on starting short-term courses

C. Maya

Changes in immigration laws in the U.K.

Parveen J. Kumar

Thiruvananthapuram: The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is keen on collaborating with Indian medical institutions for bringing short-term medical education training courses here.

Medical training in Britain has always been in great demand across the world. However, with the changes in immigration laws in the U.K., junior doctors from non-European Union countries have little chances of getting themselves trained in that country now.

It is in this context that the RCP has decided to start training courses for MRCP examination in Thiruvananthapuram, in collaboration with some leading medical institutions here, says Parveen J. Kumar, the Associate International Director (Education) of RCP, who is also the president of the British Medical Association. Dr. Kumar, renowned gastroenterologist and one of the leading medical educators in Britain, was talking to The Hindu on Monday. She is also the co-author, along with Michael Clark, of one the most successful medical texts in the world, `Kumar and Clark: Clinical Medicine'. Dr. Kumar, along with a team of RCP faculty, was in the city for a two-day academic programme for medical students and junior consultants.

Established in 1518, the RCP has been setting the highest standards in medical practice, education and training and also conducting exams and quality assurance external audit programmes.

"It is the ethos of the RCP to promote excellence in medical education and produce good doctors. MRCP is considered the gold standard for medical education across the world and we want to promote it here because India has got some of the best talents in medicine," says Dr. Kumar.

RCP would be bringing in both training and clinical examinations here. "We are hoping to start training some of our Fellows [doctors with FRCP] here so that they can conduct the examinations here along with some examiners from the U.K.," Dr. Kumar says.

Doctors aiming for the MRCP have to get through examinations in theory, clinical skills, communication, ethics and history-taking sessions. Medical students from India usually do well in theory but they lack skills when it comes to the rest, says Dr. Kumar, who has been training doctors in the National Health Service for the past 40 years.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

City Corporation draws up action plan to free capital of poverty
Anti-rabies scheme put on hold
Employees seek audit of defence canteen earnings
RCP keen on starting short-term courses
Police register case against Orthodox Church members
Mobile Maveli store launched
DCC seeks probe into misuse of funds
Three Srilankan nationals get jail term
Education programme
Around the City
In Thiruvananthapuram Today

Copyright © 2007, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu