Medicine

Bachelor

 Medicine is an exciting field which is constantly changing and evolving. (Student)

The five 'lines' are implemented progressively throughout the study programme, starting from the first phase of the bachelor. The teaching of basic medical sciences is limited to what a doctor needs in order to function and if possible the clinical relevance is indicated. Prior to medical practice (which is the focus in the master programme), one needs to acquire basic knowledge of the body, psyche and their mutual interaction and of the social and societal context in which a human functions.

Skills are introduced in the programme unit 'First Aid Course" and in the clinical practice in nursing (14 days) after the first phase of the bachelor. In addition there will be several programme units aimed at a general intellectual and scientific training.

In the secondand third phase of the bachelor the theoretical training is thematically structured in subjects such as: 'blood and circulation', 'digestion and nutrition', 'respiration and kidney' and 'development and reproduction'.  Moreover you will receive training in 'metabolism' and 'metabolic regulation', 'cell physiology', 'neurosciences', 'topographical and radiological anatomy', 'immunology', 'microbiology' and 'general pathology'.

Skills are developed by patient examination practice and the startup of communication skills training. The second phase of the bachelor focuses on group discussions. During the third phase of the bachelor, taking a patient interview is practiced.

The line human, environment and society is addressed in the programme units 'psychology', 'medical and health psychology', 'medical ethics', a short clinical practice in 'patient care' and in the 'introduction apprenticeship Family Medicine'.

The training in scientific thinking is continued. Under teacher supervision you will learn how to search for scientific articles and write a clinical scientific paper based on a self-selected research question. Finally you will have the opportunity to choose four optional courses from a wide variety of programme courses.

Every programme unit has a specific number of contact hours. These contact hours consist of lectures or exercise and practical sessions. During the lectures, the lecturer conveys new theoretical insights to all students at once. During the practical sessions, the course material is further explored and exercises are made, usually under guidance of an assistant. During the exercise sessions, students perform and observe experiments and practice skills.

Our internships are innovative. They are introduced early on in the curriculum which offers us the opportunity to practice clinical and technical research and to have contact with patients. It is fun to do practical exercises during the study programme as it makes you aware of what you're studying for. (Student)

Master

The bachelor in medicine gives direct access to the master in medicine.

The first and second phase of the master

The first and second phase of the master focus on the systematic construction of knowledge on pathology and pathology mechanisms and on the preparation of the clerkship year. Within clinical education and within the same period, internal, surgical, radiological as well as anatomopathological aspects are taught. The theoretical knowledge on pathology is brought forward in a logical and chronologically interesting order. The clinical teaching takes place by means of clinical lectures with patients, short internship periods or bedside teaching in university hospitals.

The first phase of the master explores a number of general concepts, but also addresses the clinical problems of digestion, the kidney and the urological system, infection diseases and medicine in general. Furthermore, students will be confronted with pharmacology, psychiatry and ophthalmology. During the second phase of the master the focus is moved to gaining knowledge on pathologies and pathology mechanisms. In addition to a number of concepts of general medicine: blood and blood diseases, the respiratory system, geriatrics, oncology, gynaecology and obstetrics and pediatrics are discussed. Moreover, students will be introduced to dermatology, neurology, otorhinolaryngology and stomatology. Finally the endocrinological aspects are treated.

Concerning clinical skills; exercises on the examination of patients are organized under guidance of tutor-physicians, trainings are given in the skills lab and internships are planned. Communicative skills are also further developed as students are taught how to do a consult and to bring bad news.

In addition, students take course units and have an internship on health care. The scientific training in the first and second phase of the master is oriented towards the question of how one can correctly find the solution to a clinical problem in literature.

In the first as well as the second phase of the master, students enroll in four topics, which can be chosen out of a wide range of optional courses. As a student of the first and second phase of the master in medicine you can, in addition to the compulsory courses, chose from a variety of elective courses.

The third phase of the master

The clerkship of twelve months in the third phase of the master is the cornerstone of the practical-clinical education. This clerkship entails four periods of thirteen weeks which consist of a period of internship in internal medicine, surgery, gynaecology and obstetrics and pediatrics.The fourth period consists of clerkships in neurology, psychiatry and general practice. During these clerkship periods the clerks are entitled to a number of short holiday periods. The clerkships take place in affiliated hospitals outside of Leuven. The university hospital of Leuven, which is often confronted with complex pathology, is more oriented towards the training of assistants.

The K.U.Leuven has organized its clerkships per region, as a CREMEC (Complementary REgional MEdical Centre). Moreover, there are a large number of foreign clerkships in the European Union and beyond. The goal of the clerkship year is that students qualify their medical-clinical thinking and expand their knowledge through active participation in the examination of patients, by making diagnoses and determining the best treatment.

Composing a scientific clinical paper is a crucial part of the third phase of the master in which the future physician has to be able to analyze and describe a pathology case or a series of cases in an accurate and precise way, and at the same time basing the work on recent literature.

The fourth phase of the master

In the fourth phase of the master, students choose a major from the following possibilities: family medicine, university hospital training, scientific research or social health care. Apart from their own specific contents, these four majors also have a common component. All students take part in seventy clinical lectures in which primary medical issues are addressed. Students prepare for these sessions through individual self-study and group work. During the first semester a course block system is used in which clinical training and clinical education are alternated.  Additional capita selecta in the first semester are physical medicine and rehabilitation, clinical immunology, pain control and palliative care, clinical genetics and intravenous fluid therapy. Moreover, students follow the courses forensic medicine, social medicine, medical ethics and medical law and perspectives on religion and meaning.

The major in family medicine entails clinical lectures and specific classes on family medicine. Students also partake in a training in a family medicine practice and in hospital settings. Students enroll in a predefined programme and learn under supervision how to progressively work independently. Two months of family practice training are alternated with intensive training weeks (two months in total) in which the focus is on clinical and social basic skills.

The major in university hospital training prepares students for a future specialization. It expects a full time residency (as a co-assistant) in the chosen department of the University Hospitals and a compulsory attendance at the postgraduate and post-university seminars. Students also partake in clinical lectures. In some subjects, the 'complex problems'  course is included as a programme unit. Students are required to hand in a clinical scientific paper, either in the form of a study on literature or a paper on lab work. During and immediately after the first semester, a transition to the major in family medicine or social health care is possible.

The major in scientific research is closely related to the major in university hospital training, substituting internship/residency with laboratory research. The students that choose this major are selected based on their study results and their experiences with research during their study. Students who follow this major and also wish to specialize, have to follow a residency in the chosen discipline for a limited period of time.

The major in social health care focuses on social and preventive health care. Students who take this major are required to follow four months of internship in a licensed institution of social and preventive medicine or in a governing body of the health care system. Moreover, students have two months of residency (as a co-assistant) in a department of internal medicine and/or pediatrics in one of the University Hospitals and have to complete an internship with a licensed general practitioner.