KARACHI, Sept 19: The 10th annual health science research symposium of the Aga Khan University got underway here on Monday, with an emphasis on augmentation of medical education curriculum to develop holistic modern practitioners in the country.

The national symposium, which is attended by professionals and experts from outside the country as well, was to be inaugurated by Federal Education Minister Lt-Gen (retd) Javed Ashraf Kazi but he could not make it on health grounds.

In his keynote address Dr Camer W Vellani, a distinguished professor at the AKU discussed the foundation structures for health professionals and noted that curriculum was relatively a logical and straight forward activity and called for enhancing the understanding about the process of education and healthcare system.

He said that the objectives of medical education curriculum should be the provision of education and training and development of specific knowledge and skills. Instrumental methods meant for medical students should focus on the development of concept and learning in the context of experiences, Dr Vellani added.

He said that the goals of professional development could be achieved only when the students attained competence required for taking decisions concerning the management of problems of health and illness independently and being accountable for them to the patient, the institution in which one worked, and the community.

Dr Vellani observed that broad education of students before entering the professional education should be ensured in general as it contributed to the development of the mind and maturity of decisions through multiple considerations.

In his welcome address, the acting provost of the AKU, Dr David Taylor, said that medicine and nursing were themselves changing and developing so rapidly that the related teaching methods needed regular updating.

Instead of going for a change in the curricula and teaching methods every year or two, there was a need to keep ourselves abreast of all the information available to us on the subject effectively, he added.

Chairman of the symposium organizing committee, Dr Jamsheer Talati informed that the speakers of the three-day moot included those from four continents and eight countries like Singapore, Malaysia, Bahrain, UK, Canada, USA and Nairobi.

Dean of AKU Medical College Dr Mohammad Khurshid, Dr Rukhsana W. Zuberi also spoke. Technical session of the symposium beginning on Tuesday and onwards include topics like curriculum, shifting from teaching to learning, learning resources and broadening health professions education.