Master of Medicine in Dermatology

Purpose

The purpose of the qualification is to prepare the learner for practice as a medical specialist. This qualification will allow the learner to apply for registration as a medical specialist, primarily with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA), but also with the health regulatory agencies of other countries, who may place additional requirements on the learner. The target learners are medical practitioners with a basic medical qualification and at least three years of post-qualification experience. The learner will wish to complete this qualification to be registered as a specialist. This qualification will benefit the learner in that they will be eligible for registration and practice as a medical specialist.

The academic and professional pathway is via an undergraduate medical degree and registration as a medical practitioner with the HPCSA, followed by this master's-level qualification which qualifies the learner to register and practice as a specialist. After achievement, the learner will have the knowledge, skills, and experience necessary to practice as a specialist in the field of dermatology and will be responsible for exercising this knowledge and skill in the capacity of a medical specialist.

A qualified learner will be able to

• Practise as a medical specialist in the field of dermatology,
• Understand and conduct research in the biomedical field,
• Embark on an academic career as a medical academic.

In addition, the following learner attributes will be integrated into the learning process: knowledge literacy, ability to solve complex problems in the medical domain, respect for ethics and professionalism in practice, management of information and knowledge production via research, professional communication in the context of medical practice and research, management of learning and accountability.

Rationale

The healthcare systems of all countries, including South Africa, require medical specialists in specific disciplines to apply a standard of care above that which the generalist practitioner can offer. Such specialists will provide patient care personally but are also responsible for raising the level of knowledge in their discipline amongst generalists, as well as being able to subspecialise further or to take responsibility for the teaching and training of undergraduate and postgraduate students in the healthcare disciplines, and for the generation of knowledge via published experience and research. There is no similar qualification already registered on the SANQF.

The practice of a healthcare profession benefits society directly by promoting, maintaining and restoring health, and benefits the economy by contributing to the maintenance of a healthy workforce. The medical specialist has a critical role to play in the provision of healthcare. South Africa is under-supplied with medical specialists when compared with international norms. Medical specialisation may therefore be seen as a scarce skill and is remunerated as such in the public service. The qualification was developed in concert with all other South African universities offering specialist training, the HPCSA, the Colleges of Medicine of South Africa, the Medical Association of South Africa, the national and provincial departments of health, and with reference to international organisations responsible for the training of medical specialists in other countries.

The typical learner for the qualification is a medical practitioner with at least a bachelor's degree in medicine registered with the Health Professions Council, has at least three years of post-qualification experience, and wishes to train and practice as a medical specialist. Most qualifying learners will embark on specialist medical practice in the public or private sectors in South Africa, in the medical workforce of neighbouring and foreign countries, while some will enter academia as medical academics, undertake a full- or part-time research career, embark on medical administration in the public, private and corporate sectors or into the commercial sector, utilising their specialist medical knowledge in the context of the pharmaceutical industry or in areas of innovation in other industries, or join not-for-profit philanthropic organisations as providers of healthcare, advocates for healthcare or project managers.

The HPCSA, the professional body governing the health professions, cooperates with the relevant QC with respect to the qualification and quality assurance and conducts five-yearly on-site visits to evaluate the programme leading to qualification. Successful learners are immediately registrable with the HPCSA as medical specialists. They are, in principle, eligible for registration with the health regulatory bodies of other countries, though they may be subject to additional requirements.

The qualification is linked to a single profession: that of a medical specialist. The learning/work pathway is via an undergraduate medical degree followed by prescribed experience (in South Africa, internship and community service), which then articulate vertically with the Master of Medicine qualification. The successful learner is then eligible for admission to the specialist register of the HPCSA. In the South African public health sector, this permits the learner to progress from medical officer to specialist rank. Successful learners may also enter subspecialist training with subsequent admission to the subspecialist register of the HPCSA. This qualification, therefore, has important implications for career progression and mobility within the work environment.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)

The institution has Approved Guidelines for the Recognition of Prior Learning (2024), which are applicable in respect of equivalent qualifications for admission into the qualification. RPL for access and exemption will not apply to this qualification, given its narrow focus. All learners must complete the prescribed modules or comparable modules at another institution via credit accumulation and transfer.

Entry Requirements

• Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery, NQF level 8

Or recognised equivalent degree

And

Have held such qualification for at least two years prior to registration, satisfy the require-ments of the HPCSA to enter specialist training, are appointed to a specialist training "(regis-trar" post)" by the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Department of Health or, in the case of foreign-qualified doctors who do not hold full South African registration, are given limited registration for training purposes by the HPCSA and may only be employed in unpaid specialist training posts designated as "supernumerary".

This qualification comprises six compulsory modules at National Qualifications Framework Level 9, totalling 360 Credits.

Compulsory, 360 Credits.

• Research Methodology, 14 Credits.
• Research Project, 90 Credits.
• Dermatology Clinical and Professional Practice 1, 64 Credits.
• Dermatology Clinical and Professional Practice 2, 64 Credits.
• Dermatology Clinical and Professional Practice 3, 64 Credits.
• Dermatology Clinical and Professional Practice 4, 64 Credits.

A Master of Medicine in Dermatology is able to diagnose, through oral communication, physical examination, and interpretation of appropriate special investigations, and formulate and prosecute treatment options for divergent problems in Dermatology in an holistic manner. S/he is able to advise on and implement prophylactic measures to prevent disease relevant to Dermatology. S/he is able to interpret scientific literature relevant to his/her field and through reflection adapt new developments in the field of Dermatology into his/her clinical practice. S/he is able to conceptualise, plan and implement and interpret research relevant to the practice of Dermatology.

• Demonstrate academic literacy using the medium of instruction effectively to convey ideas and insight intelligibly and to achieve own communication purposes;
• Demonstrate an understanding of statistical data;
• Communicate effectively with patient and colleagues
• Personal appropriate physical examination;
• Choose appropriate special investigations plan and implement treatment options in an holistic manner;
• Conceptualise, plan implement and interpret research

• Interact with text (oral and written) through critical listening/reading skills;
• Produce texts which integrate information from different sources using appropriate academic and professional conventions;
• Interpret and generate numerical data in various formats;
• Apply numerical data to research and clinical practice;
• Take a medical history at a level appropriate to the specialty and communicate the findings and treatment options effectively with the patient and referring doctor;
• Determine signs and symptoms of disease or injury and perform advanced physical examination appropriate to the level of a specialist in the field;
• Use cost-effective investigations which provide sufficient relevant information to aid diagnosis;
• Gather information from various sources, reflect critically on knowledge and information and in consultation with the patient and other health care professions (where appropriate) plan and implement to completion a treatment option
• Initiate and complete a research project.

Integrated assessment appropriately incorporated to ensure that the purpose of the qualification is achieved

The University of Natal is currently reforming its assessment strategies to include the assessment of applied competence for each qualification. In the meantime, a combination of continuous assessment and traditional written examinations serve to assess the integration of all/most of the learning outcomes for each module in a qualification.