SAQA

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SOUTH AFRICAN QUALIFICATIONS AUTHORITY

REGISTERED QUALIFICATION:

Master of Medicine in Dermatology

SAQA QUAL ID	QUALIFICATION TITLE
81314	Master of Medicine in Dermatology
ORIGINATOR
University of KwaZulu-Natal
PRIMARY OR DELEGATED QUALITY ASSURANCE FUNCTIONARY			NQF SUB-FRAMEWORK
CHE - Council on Higher Education			HEQSF - Higher Education Qualifications Sub-framework
QUALIFICATION TYPE	FIELD		SUBFIELD
Master's Degree	Field 09 - Health Sciences and Social Services		Curative Health
ABET BAND	MINIMUM CREDITS	PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL	NQF LEVEL	QUAL CLASS
Undefined	128	Level 8 and above	NQF Level 09	Regular-Provider-ELOAC
REGISTRATION STATUS		SAQA DECISION NUMBER	REGISTRATION START DATE	REGISTRATION END DATE
Registered		EXCO 0733/25	2024-06-30	2027-06-30
LAST DATE FOR ENROLMENT		LAST DATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT
2028-06-30		2031-06-30

In all of the tables in this document, both the pre-2009 NQF Level and the NQF Level is shown. In the text (purpose statements, qualification rules, etc), any references to NQF Levels are to the pre-2009 levels unless specifically stated otherwise.

This qualification replaces:

Qual ID	Qualification Title	Pre-2009 NQF Level	NQF Level	Min Credits	Replacement Status
16313	Master of Medicine: Dermatology	Level 8 and above	NQF Level 09	128	Complete

This qualification is replaced by:

Qual ID	Qualification Title	Pre-2009 NQF Level	NQF Level	Min Credits	Replacement Status
110305	Master of Medicine in Dermatology	Not Applicable	NQF Level 09	180	Complete

PURPOSE AND RATIONALE OF THE QUALIFICATION

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.

LEARNING ASSUMED TO BE IN PLACE AND RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING

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".

RECOGNISE PREVIOUS LEARNING?

QUALIFICATION RULES

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.

EXIT LEVEL OUTCOMES

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

ASSOCIATED ASSESSMENT CRITERIA

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.

ARTICULATION OPTIONS

Vertical articulation is from the Bachelor in Medical and Bachelor in Surgery to either a Doctorate in Medicine or a Doctorate in Philosophy.
Horizon articulation is possible from the qualification process of the College of Medicine of South Africa (Fellow of the College of Dermatologists of South Africa) into this qualification.
The University of Natal Medicine School is the only Medical School in the region
Regional co-operation has been investigated through the Health Science Education and Training Board of the Eastern Seaboard Association of Tertiary Institutions.

MODERATION OPTIONS

The ETQA system for HE is not yet fully developed. Until such time as it is, procedures described under Assessor criteria suffice.

CRITERIA FOR THE REGISTRATION OF ASSESSORS

Until the HEQC establishes a registration system for assessors in the HET Band, the University of Natal assumes that on the basis of its rigorous selection criteria for the appointment of academic staff (who also have opportunities for staff development in assessment), staffs are competent to assess students on the modules they teach. This assessment is quality assured via a university system of internal moderation and external examination. External examiners are appointed for their teaching and disciplinary expertise and subject to the approval of Faculty Boards. The University of Natal ruling is that 66 % of all assessments at exit level, i.e. leading to qualifications are externally examined.

REREGISTRATION HISTORY

As per the SAQA Board decision/s at that time, this qualification was Reregistered in 2006; 2009; 2012; 2015.

LEARNING PROGRAMMES RECORDED AGAINST THIS QUALIFICATION:

When qualifications are replaced, some (but not all) of their learning programmes are moved to the replacement qualifications. If a learning programme appears to be missing from here, please check the replaced qualification.

NONE

PROVIDERS CURRENTLY ACCREDITED TO OFFER THIS QUALIFICATION:

This information shows the current accreditations (i.e. those not past their accreditation end dates), and is the most complete record available to SAQA as of today. Some Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionaries have a lag in their recording systems for provider accreditation, in turn leading to a lag in notifying SAQA of all the providers that they have accredited to offer qualifications and unit standards, as well as any extensions to accreditation end dates. The relevant Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionary should be notified if a record appears to be missing from here.

1.	University of KwaZulu-Natal