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SOUTH AFRICAN QUALIFICATIONS AUTHORITY 
REGISTERED QUALIFICATION: 

Master of Medicine in Paediatric Surgery 
SAQA QUAL ID QUALIFICATION TITLE
88918  Master of Medicine in Paediatric Surgery 
ORIGINATOR
University of the Free State 
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  600  Not Applicable  NQF Level 09  Regular-Provider-ELOAC 
REGISTRATION STATUS SAQA DECISION NUMBER REGISTRATION START DATE REGISTRATION END DATE
Registered-data under construction  EXCO 0324/24  2024-07-01  2027-06-30 
LAST DATE FOR ENROLMENT LAST DATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT
2028-06-30   2031-06-30  

Registered-data under construction

The qualification content is currently being updated for the qualifications with the status “Registered-data under construction” or showing “DETAILS UNDER CONSTRUCTION” to ensure compliance with SAQA’S Policy and Criteria for the registration of qualifications and part-qualifications on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) (As amended, 2022). These qualifications are re-registered until 30 June 2027 and can legitimately be offered by the institutions to which they are registered.

 

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.  

PURPOSE AND RATIONALE OF THE QUALIFICATION 
Purpose:
The purpose of the programme is to adequately train paediatric surgeons. The qualification intends to deliver graduates who will have mastered the specialist knowledge, the competencies to use a wide range of specialised skills and methods in the field of Paediatric Surgery, and the values relevant to practise as specialist Paediatric Surgeons. The qualification thus intends to support the provision of quality health care to the South African society as it aims to deliver graduates who are able to address the dire need for specialist paediatric surgical skills. The graduates will be able to act ethically and professionally, think analytically and portray a critical awareness of current problems and new insights informed by and at the forefront of Paediatric Surgery and its related areas of professional practice.

Rationale:
Paediatric Surgery is a professionally recognised and independent speciality. This demanding surgical speciality calls for specialist knowledge that enables highly trained and skilled surgeons to scientifically engage in the field of paediatric surgery. It requires a proficiently designed training programme that will deliver expert and professional practising paediatric surgeons who will intervene successfully and significantly in the lives and health of suffering children. 

LEARNING ASSUMED TO BE IN PLACE AND RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING 
Candidates are assumed to have clinical experience and acquired general theoretical and practical knowledge associated with the field of Medical Clinical Sciences.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL):
Possible exemption, fully or partially, on the basis of comparable training and experience gained at another institution could be granted by the University of the Free State. Based on the Recognition of Prior Learning, candidates may be granted exemption from applicable components of the programme.

Access to the Qualification:
Candidates admitted to the Master of Medicine (Paediatric Surgery) should have obtained:
  • A Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery Degree.
  • Completed community service.
  • Registration with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) or appropriate equivalent health authority of the country of origin. 
    		•

    RECOGNISE PREVIOUS LEARNING? 
    Y 

    QUALIFICATION RULES 
    This qualification comprises seven compulsory modules at NQF Level 9, plus a period of health care practical experience totalling 600 Credits.

    Modules:
  • Anatomy, 60 Credits.
  • Physiology (Medicine), 60 Credits.
  • Anatomical Pathology, 60 Credits.
  • Research Methodology, 12 Credits.
  • General Surgical Principles including Intensive Care, 152 Credits.
  • Extended Research Report, 64 Credits.
  • Paediatric Surgery, 192 Credits, Plus Health Care Practice. 
    		•

    EXIT LEVEL OUTCOMES 
    1. Systemise, conceptualise and construct in-depth knowledge by means of critical and analytical thinking.
    2. Interpret and reflect on current and future insights on informed practice and research.
    3. Reconcile advance scholarship in the field, referring to professional development, ethical research practices and service to the community.
    4. Apply a wide range of specialised skills and/or established research methods in order to diagnose and effectively treat complex problems within the area of Paediatric Surgery.

    Critical Cross-Field Outcomes:
    This qualification allows all the Critical Cross-Field Outcomes to be addressed. 

    ASSOCIATED ASSESSMENT CRITERIA 
    The following assessment criteria are applied in an integrated manner:
  • Express established knowledge of the field by portraying a critical awareness of current problems and new trends informed by research within the ambit of professional practice.
  • Interrogate multiple sources of knowledge in order to critically evaluate current research and methodologies.
  • Show originality in the application and command of knowledge, together with a practical understanding of how established techniques of research and enquiry are used to create and interpret new knowledge in the discipline.
  • Evaluate critically, current research, as well as critique current methodologies in the field in order to propose new hypotheses, if appropriate.
  • Utilise a wide range of specialised skills in identifying, conceptualising, designing and implementing methods of enquiry to address complex and challenging problems within the area of Paediatric Surgery.
  • Use resources and insights from academic and professional discourses in order to defend and communicate substantial ideas.
  • Formulate autonomous decisions within the ambit of ethical professional practice.
  • Utilise own learning strategies to sustain independent learning and academic or professional development, and interact effectively within the professional group as a means of enhancing learning.
  • Communicate and defend substantial ideas that are grounded in scientific research through engaging in academic and professional discourse.

    Integrated Assessment:
    Different kinds of evidence of learning are collected to monitor student progress. Constructive feedback on the learning process and/or learning progress is provided to individual students and/or groups of students in oral and/or written format and clearly explained and justified.

    For the purposes of this programme, candidates are subjected to 3 examination sessions, focusing not only on theoretical knowledge, but also on the integration of knowledge and competencies during practical examination sessions. Apart from written and practical examinations, candidates are required to engage in a research project and to submit an extended research report. 
    		•

    INTERNATIONAL COMPARABILITY 
    The University of Sydney provides a Master of Medicine Paediatric Medicine Degree. The qualification provides latest practical and theoretical knowledge of paediatric medicine. Learners are supposed to complete the following courses:
  • Quality and safety in health care.
  • Independent Studies A.
  • Independent Studies B.
  • Neonatal Medicine.
  • Paediatric Immunisation.
  • Adolescent Medicine.
  • General and Developmental Paediatrics.
  • Independent Studies.
  • Introduction to Pain Management.
  • Pain Mechanisms and Contributors.
  • Pain Treatment and Management Principles.
  • Pain Conditions.
  • Orofacial Pain.
  • Independent Studies in Pain.
  • Clinical Aspects of Neurobiology.
  • Psychology of Pain.
  • Concepts of Pain.
  • Musculoskeletal Pain.
  • Cancer Pain.
  • Pharmacology of Pain Medicine.
  • Psychological Approaches in Pain Management.
  • Disability and Pain Rehabilitation.
  • Pain in Children.
  • Complementary Therapies: Pain Management.
  • Leadership in Medicine.
  • Paediatric Asthma and Allergy.
  • Epidemiology Methods and Uses.
  • Communicable Disease Control.

    The two qualifications have many modules that overlap. Both have a practical component.

    The Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences Department of Paediatrics at the University of Melbourne in Australia offers a Master of Medicine in Paediatrics. The course provides learners with the latest practical and theoretical knowledge of Paediatric Medicine.
    The two year course consists of the following models:
    Year one:
  • Clinical skills 1 and 2.
  • Applied clinical skills 1 and 2.
  • Research skills 1.
  • Professional development.

    Year two:
  • Research skills 2.

    There is similarity between the two qualifications.

    The University of Glasgow offers a Paediatric Science MSc(Clin Sci).

    There are two components to the programme Core course, namely, evidence-based medicine and research. This course provides core skills in critical review, communications, medical ethics, statistics and data handling, research methods and the principles of evidence-based medicine, good clinical practice and clinical governance, in order to equip learners for medical practice and to prepare them for specialist courses.

    It has two sub-specialities:
  • Paediatric Science and Audit. This course provides learners with a rigorous scientific basis for evidence-based practice in a child health specialisation.
  • Paediatric Project and Research. The research project and in-depth review are a means of getting learners to engage in detail with one topic or issue relevant to their specialist medical subject, then carry out original research into that topic or issue and present an extended written argument.

    Internationally there is no qualification that compares fully to the Master's in Paediatric Surgery but the qualification has significant overlaps in content and methodology with those mentioned above. 
    		•

    ARTICULATION OPTIONS 
    The qualification articulates horizontally with:
  • Master of Medicine: Paediatrics at NQF Level 9.

    This qualification articulates vertically with:
  • Doctor of Medicine: Paediatrics.
  • Doctor of Medicine: Surgery.
    Or
  • Any Doctoral Degree: Medicine (PhD) at NQF Level 10. 
    		•

    MODERATION OPTIONS 
    External moderation of research projects and examinations plays a key role in quality assurance, as well as assuring that knowledge created via research in paediatric surgery is applicable to a wider community, taking into account regional differences and latest trends.

    External examiner reports and departmental peer reviews ensure that the programme and accompanying examinations and research practices adhere to institutional and national criteria and meet the expectations of the Health Profession Council of South Africa. Moderator and external examiner reports will be used to adapt and improve the course on an ongoing basis where it does not affect outcomes stated in advance. 

    CRITERIA FOR THE REGISTRATION OF ASSESSORS 
    The assessor must:
  • Be an experienced tutor with experience in the particular module or in the medical field.
  • Be in possession of a similar qualification or from the same family of qualifications, at or above the level of the qualification. 
    		•

    REREGISTRATION HISTORY 
    As per the SAQA Board decision/s at that time, this qualification was Reregistered in 2015. 

    NOTES 
    N/A 

    LEARNING PROGRAMMES RECORDED AGAINST THIS 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 the Free State 


    All qualifications and part qualifications registered on the National Qualifications Framework are public property. Thus the only payment that can be made for them is for service and reproduction. It is illegal to sell this material for profit. If the material is reproduced or quoted, the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) should be acknowledged as the source.