Having graduated from the King Edward Medical College in 1986, Professor Khalid Masood Gondal did his fellowship in surgery in 1992. After having served in various capacities he was promoted as the professor of surgery. At present, he is serving in the same capacity at the King Edward Medical University, Lahore.

A fellow of College of Physicians and Surgeons, Pakistan (CPSP), he is an elected councilor since 2007, and also their director general of international relations besides being their provincial director. He has more than 60 national as well as international research publications to his credit and more than 30 national/international presentations. HEC has also nominated him as the focal person for research in the subject of surgery. In recognition of his services, Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons as well as the College of Surgeons of Sri Lanka have awarded him the honorary fellowships.

With over 20 years of teaching experience, Prof Gondal is trying to do his best for the medical academia. Describing CPSP’s objectives, he says, “Being established in 1962, CPSP recently completed 50 years. “It was established for maintaining high principles of the medical profession, promotion of specialist medical practice as well as the arrangement of post graduate medical training in hospitals. It is the only post graduate medical institution in the country that has established a system of effective and consistent upgradation of medical education and training.”

The college offers admission in 64 fellowship programmes. As far as the number of fellowship programmes is concerned, CPSP is number two in the whole world as Canada stands at number one by offering fellowships in 67 various programmes. Professor Gondal claims that our doctors are getting lucrative offers from other countries due to the services of CPSP. “Our doctors are doing great in other countries. We have CPSP centres in Nepal and Saudi Arabia. We are planning to open our centres in UAE and Kuwait very soon. There is no such institution in India,” Prof Gondal further adds.

There is great emphasis on research and special courses are also introduced to train the doctors. So far, CPSP has offered training to thousands of doctors from all over the country. Likewise, there is a very important discipline which is being introduced by the CPSP. It is the department of emergency medicine. CPSP has devised a whole programme as well as finalised curricula for this special programme. Prof Gondal is of the view that our hospitals don’t have this department so eight per cent of the patients expire within 24 to 48 hours in the emergency wards. “The number of casualties can be reduced,” claims Prof Gondal, “if there is properly trained staff at the emergency wards of all the hospitals. CPSP has helped set up emergency medicine departments in two hospitals — Aga Khan Hospital and Shifa International Hospital. This new department is not working in any other hospital of the country.

CPSP is trying to set up this department in all hospitals of the country. “We are trying to start this department in every hospital of the country. We have devised a course as well as a degree programme in this discipline,” he says.

The college is also offering fellowships in infectious diseases and special emphasis has been laid on the dreaded dengue epidemic.

The college also intends to make the functioning of the district level hospitals of our country better. The idea is to bring their performance up to the mark. Recently, World Health Organisation complimented CPSP when it praised the performance of the college — “The democracy of India, Rural Health System of Sri Lanka and the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Pakistan are really laudable.”

Prof Gondal is hopeful that CPSP will become the hub of medical research in the Islamic world very soon. “We have singed a MoU with England as well as Ireland. Our doctors would soon start going there to chisel their skills.”

According to Prof Gondal, CPSP has been able to achieve many milestones in its 50 years, and it will continue to prosper in the coming years. “I can safely say that CPSP has no rival in Asia. Due to our training programmes and fellowships, our doctors are performing better at the international level. We have made it a point to avoid any kind of laxity as far as research in CPSP is concerned,” he concludes.