Pathology - Sultan Qaboos University

POSTGRADUATE TEACHINGThe Pathology Department is a training centre for the Oman Medical Specialty Board (OMSB) and is an approvedcentre for the Part I examination of the British Fellowship of the Royal College of Pathologists (FRC-Path), UK. There are up to 3 residents posted at any one time for general pathology training. The Departmentalso offers an elective rotation (4 weeks) for Dermatology, Haematology and Obstetrics and Gynaecologyresidents. This provides them with an opportunity to develop an understanding about Dermatopathologyand Gynaecological pathology, respectively. In addition to OMSB residents, there are 3 senior house officersemployed by SQUH. They rotate between surgical pathology and cytopathology and acquire basic trainingbefore they travel abroad for further studies. The training programme for postgraduate residents in Pathologyis 5 years. At present, there are eleven OMSB trainees who rotate between the Royal Hospital, KhoulaHospital, the Armed Forces Hospital and SQUH.A delegation from the Royal College of Pathologists visited the Department to evaluate the postgraduatetraining programme in histopathology and our continuing accreditation by the College. The team was ledby the President of the College, Prof. Peter Furness. The feedback was very positive and we also had an opportunityto discuss placements for our residents in the UK. This is a difficult time because of changes in Britishgovernment regulations regarding training programmes for foreign students so the visitors were unable tomake any immediate commitments.TRAINING COURSES & CME ACTIVITIESClinico-pathological conferences/seminars are held at least once a month in the Department. Under CMEactivities, consultant pathologists participated in presentations in the fields of: paediatrics, surgery, haematologyand obstetrics and gynaecology. There were six inter-hospital meetings covering diagnostic and renalpathology. Consultant pathologists provided input for the College in the SCRAPS CME presentations,The Department of Pathology offers clinical attachments for laboratory medicine. The technical staff undertookthe training of three Omani students from various hospitals and schools who are studying medicallaboratory techniques.Clinical & Diagnostic ServicesThe Department maintains a high level of diagnostic services in different subspecialties. It acts as a referralcentre for the Ministry of Health Hospitals, the Royal Oman Police Hospital, the Armed Forces Hospital, RoyalPalace Hospital and clinics, Royal Diwan clinics, and private hospitals within Oman.The diagnostic services offered include: diagnostic histopathology service, diagnostic cytopathology, diagnosticimmunocytochemistry, diagnostic enzyme histochemistry and diagnostic electron microscopy.academic and patient care departmentsPathology173