RAWALPINDI: The Rawalpindi Medical University (RMU) held a ceremony to award certificates to doctors who completed a one-year emergency training diploma programme.

The event was presided over by Royal College of Emergency Medicine UK President Adrian Boyle, RMU Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Mohammad Umar and Dr Ayaz Abbasi from UK.

The RMU is the first university in Pakistan to start this programme in 2019. Till now around 37 young doctors have completed this one-year diploma programme.

Adrian Boyle awarded certificates to the successful doctors.

Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) started an emergency training programme in UK as a separate speciality and established new Royal College for it like the Royal College of Physicians London, Royal College of Edinburgh and Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons, Glasgow. There are few centres in world where this programme is being run.

A couple of years ago, the Punjab government started an emergency strengthening programme but no trained human resource was available.

Four years ago, with the efforts of Dr Ayaz Abbasi, who is working as the director emergency in a hospital in UK, the president RCEM visited Pakistan to establish a collaborative programme between RMU and UK.

Finally, the first foundation programme in emergency medicine was started at RMU in 2019. Now RMU is running the second batch of the Royal College Emergency Foundation Programme.

Professor Umar requested the president RCEM to establish an examination centre for this course in Rawalpindi Medical University.

Published in Dawn, November 29th, 2022