Daily Nation News
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
By NATION Correspondent
http://www.nationaudio.com/News/DailyNation/Today/News/News260820039.html

University's postgraduate courses start in November

The Aga Khan University will offer postgraduate courses in internal medicine, general surgery and radiology from November 2003.

The curriculum for the courses is the result of a consensus reached by medical experts from the University of Nairobi, Moi University, Aga Khan University, the Aga Khan Hospitals in Nairobi and Karachi as well as curriculum and education experts.

Dr Roger Sutton, the Associate Dean of the Aga Khan University, said the Aga Khan Hospital organised three workshops to discuss the course objectives, content, assessment methods and teaching strategies.

"The aim was to develop a programme designed to take care of the needs of the region and the requirements of the Commission for Higher Education, Medical Practitioners and Dentists Board and the Aga Khan University, Karachi," he said.

Prof A. Mutema of Moi University, who facilitated the workshops, explained: "This is the first time that universities in East Africa have come together to agree on a course curriculum for one university. Previously, each institution decided on what to include in their courses. We hope this curriculum can eventually be adopted as the national standard as a lot of time and effort have gone into designing it."

The university's first programme in East Africa is in Advanced Nursing Studies offered at the Kenya Campus, next to Aga Khan Hospital, Nairobi.

The University was given a letter of interim authority in 2002 by the Kenya Commission for Higher Education and has since enrolled students for diploma, Bachelor of Science and Advanced Programme in Nursing.

The Aga Khan University is the first private medical school in East Africa. The curriculum involves working closely with other institutions including government hospitals. The University hopes to begin residencies in areas of Pathology, Anaesthesia, Obstetrics and Paediatrics in the future.