DIPLOMA IN FAMILY PRACTICE (DFP)
(Sponsor: St. Philip’s Hospital)
The MCFD plans to run its first Diploma in Family Practice over two years mainly through distance learning with the occasional workshop. The diploma is intended to be the first post-graduate qualification in family medicine in Malta and is to be delivered by Family Doctors for Family Doctors, intending to meet the needs of the local community doctor.
Emphasis will be placed on those topics which participants feel a gap still exist in formal training. The course will start next fall.
What are the objectives of the course?
· Update on common conditions
· To help participants identify areas in which they appreciate more learning objectives
· To have a malleable diploma which can change according to needs
· To have the first post-graduate qualification by GPs for GPs
· To develop the diploma into a distance learning programme
· To improve knowledge in patient care and share experiences
· To have a basis for which the college will reserve the right to consider for membership by assessment.
Format
There will be eighteen modules as outlined below. One module is covered each month, with a break over the summer of 2006. Attendance to any workshops and talks is compulsory. Each candidate will need to reply to Modified Essay Questions (MEQs) set and scored by the tutor delivering the module. A time commitment of approximately four hours per week, besides attendance for any talk/s, is needed. The diploma is being developed along the lines of the recently delivered Irish College diplomas – in the first instance where workshops were involved. Sharing of experience will be encouraged during these workshops.
Assessment
The MEQs are the main form of assessment. Candidates will be required to compile a portfolio of each module and show that evidence-based inquiry was done in each module. The portfolio will take the form of a diary, which is to be e-mailed in with the MEQs. The content of the diary will be explained in the introductory workshop.
Instead of a final examination, the example used by ICGP will be followed where candidates will submit a project in a particular area of interest related to family medicine. Candidates must show how they intend to implement the project into their daily practice.
What topics will be covered in the course?
Module 1. Setting up a Practice
Module 2. The Consultation
Module 3. CPD and life-long learning
Module 4. Child Surveillance
Module 5. Substance abuse
Module 6. Gender issues
Module 7. Palliative Care and Cancer
Module 8. Research in GP
Module 9. Forensic relevance to GP
Module 10. Medical Law and Ethics
Therapeutics, prevention and symptomatic presentation:
Module 11. Respiratory
Module 12. Cardiovascular
Module 13. Genitourinary and STDs
Module 14. Gastrointestinal
Module 15. Neurological presentations
Module 16. Arthritis and SLE
Module 17. Chronic diseases: diabetes
Module 18. Common genetics encountered in GP, including ethical, legal and social issues of Genetic Counseling.
Recognizing the learning experience of such an endeavor, the MCFD reserves the right to change the order or title of each module according to feedback and needs assessment.
Entry requirements
The diploma in family practice is open to medical practitioners. Although it is intended more for the established GP who wishes a recognized qualification in his field and who would like to obtain more knowledge in the relevant areas, there is no need for a participant to be registered on the specialist register as a GP and no minimum number of years in practice is required. This decision was taken to encourage participation of newly qualified doctors, especially those who concurrently may be doing Vocational Training.
Graduation
A Diploma in Family Practice will be awarded. This diploma has the support of sister colleges in the UK. The candidate will be given the right to use the letters DFP after his or her MD. The graduation ceremony will be held during the College annual dinner in a joint ceremony with other awards (including, in the near future, membership) the college may be presenting.
Course Fee
Members of the MCFD LM 400
Non-members of the MCFD LM 450
The College is seeking to have this course fee as tax deductible.
The course will provide the candidate with two years’ worth of CME during the period the candidate is doing the course work.
Sponsor
St. Philip's Hospital (for workshop premises, stationery and light refreshments).
Registration
If you are interested in further details of the diploma or would like to apply to participate, please contact the Hon. Secretary Dr. Noel Caruana on noel.caruana@gov.mt, or the Diploma Coordinator Dr. Pierre Mallia at pmallia@synapse.net.mt
Important notes
The college reserves the right to change modules, to use existing CME as modules, to cater for individual problems within limits as permitted by logistics, and to exempt candidates from certain modules if they can show proof of certification in the area. The college reserves the right also to allow tutors to participate in the diploma, exempting them from the module they will be delivering. The MCFD will keep the copyright of the diploma and no part of it can be used without its prior written permission. The College also reserves the right to limit the number of participants in each intake and is not bound by any dates when the next intake will occur, although it is hoped that the diploma will be offered every year. As such, the college also reserves the right to stipulate the minimum number of participants for a diploma to start.
Places in this intake are limited and therefore early application is advisable.