By Muhammad Qasim
The College of Physicians and Surgeons Pakistan (CPSP) will launch a new specialty of Critical Care Medicine (CCM) for training of junior doctors in the country according to international standards.
In the new fellowship, training would likely be started from January next year at selective resource/training centres in Karachi, Lahore and twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad. “Pakistan has not more than six qualified experts in the field of Critical Care Medicine (CCM) and all these are foreign qualified as training in the specialty has not been made available over here in Pakistan as yet,” said elected Councillor and Controller of Examination at CPSP Professor Dr. Shoaib Shafi while talking to ‘The News’ Thursday.
He said that the CPSP has planned two-year training/fellowship in CCM. “It would be second FCPS means only those who have already qualified an FCPS in Medicine, Anaesthesia, Surgery, Pulmonology or Nephrology can apply for the FCPS in CCM,” he said. He said that the training in the course would most probably be started from January 2010 initially at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, Shifa International, Islamabad, Military Hospital Rawalpindi, Services Hospital and Sheikh Zayed Hospital in Lahore and Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi. “Last date for submission of applications for candidates, the FCPS doctors, is December 31, 2009.” He said that the CPSP is presently busy doing inspections for finalisation of resource/training centres. “We planned to increase number of training centres to provide opportunity to maximum doctors all across Pakistan.”
He said that the CPSP has already approved the degree in the planned course and curriculum for the training has also been finalised. “After accreditation of the fellowship by the CPSP, we would be able to have acquired number of specialists in the field within next few years,” said Dr. Shoaib.