The Faculties of Medicine of the University of Lisbon and the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro open their doors to a two-way curricular exchange.
"Currently we are ready to take this step towards curricular exchange, the students can include a semester or a whole year in Rio de Janeiro as part of their course. And they can do it as early as February this year", confirms Professor Joaquim Ferreira, President of the Pedagogical Board.
Those who decide to cross the Atlantic need to know that they cannot count on funding, as in the case of the Erasmus programme, implemented across Europe, "but we are trying to move in that direction", says Professor Joaquim Ferreira.
In Brazil, the academic year starts in February, causing slight calendar discrepancies which should the students need to keep in mind, but this does not hinder our ability to manage this training between countries.
For now, without a limited number of openings, both Faculties are waiting for their first students.
The Faculty of Medicine has more than 100 mobility students each year, mostly going abroad, but covered by the Erasmus, program, to study (4th- and 5th-year students who attend courses), or to complete an internship (6th-year who attend clinical internships).
Professor and Coordinator of the Group for International Cooperation, João Forjaz Lacerda, reinforces the importance of these mobility processes as movements that the Faculty supports and leads. "This new partnership fits into our Faculty's broad mobility tradition and very broad collaboration with Brazil in terms of internships. The challenge here is not only to continue stimulating internships but also studies, which are less frequent. Our meeting with Professors from the UFRJ was very fruitful because their curricular plan is similar to ours so it will not be hard for us to liaise".
Hoping to be able to answer all the doubts students may have, News@FMUL talked to the two Professors from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro who supervise the mobility process in force.
José Marcus Eulálio is Assistant Professor at the Department of Surgery of the University and specialist in the area of Gastrointestinal Surgery. Gláucia Moraes de Oliveira is Professor of Cardiology and Coordinator of the Postgraduate Program in Cardiology, as well as the person in charge of the International Exchange Programme of the UFRJ.
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What are the advantages of going to the UFRJ for our students? UFRJ?
The UFRJ is the most traditional Federal University of Brazil, as it was the first founded in the country. Its Faculty of Medicine is recognised for the excellence of its courses and attracts students from all the states of the federation. The annual admission test, due to a high competitiveness, selects a differentiated student body recognised for its intellectual capacities and dedication to Medical studies. The students of the University of Medicine of the UFRJ mutually create an atmosphere of problematisation and creativity, where the human aspect of the medical practice can be reconciled with the scientific and social challenges that seek an integrated understanding of the patient, his disease and his relationship with society. Rio de Janeiro is historically linked to Lisbon, and its architecture, gastronomy and climate make Portuguese students feel at home. In short, it is an experience rich in ideas, attitudes and initiatives that characterise a good practice and give a postulating scientific and cultural dimension of the common roots that bring Portugal and Brazil together.
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What are your expectations regarding this partnership between institutions?
To train professionals with solid and up-to-date technical-scientific knowledge, an ethical and humanistic attitude and a comprehensive conception of the motives and conditions of health in society, committed to the health of individuals, families and the community, at all levels of attention, to act in the care, research and administration in health for the quality of life.
We expect 4 students of every school, 2 students per semester, to take part in these exchanges to promote a comprehensive education, seek and expand knowledge, and preserve and spread culture, in favour of the social body from both sides. The number of students may increase based on a mutual agreement.
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How is your academic calendar organized?
In the first three semesters, the student attends Rotary Internships in seven mandatory areas of knowledge, namely: Clinical Medicine, Surgery, Paediatrics, Gynaecology and Obstetrics, Mental Health. Family and Community Health and Collective Health, in training periods with 40 hours a week, for 12 weeks in each area, except for the training in Collective Health which takes place on a longitudinal basis in periods of 4 hours a week throughout the semester, during three semesters.
In order to organise the academic semester, the Rotary Internships are divided into three blocks as follows:
1- Rotary Internship in Clinical Medicine, Rotary Internship in Surgery, and Internship in Collective Health I;
2- Rotary Internship in Paediatrics, Rotary Internship in Gynaecology and Obstetrics, and Rotary Internship in Collective Health II; and
3- Rotary Internship in Family and Community Medicine, Rotary Internship in Mental Health, and Rotary Internship in Collective Health III.
In the fourth semester, the students attend an Elective Internship in which they are free to choose two of the previously mentioned areas, for training periods that also last twelve weeks each.
Training in Emergency Service and/or in Intensive Therapy for 12 hours a week during one academic semester is mandatory in this Internship.
The study programme will be the subject of a study plan for your students. The students of the FM-UFRJ will be integrated into the standard curriculum of the FM-Ulisboa and vice-versa having the possibility to choose study plans that will be evaluated by the commission of both universities. There are several subjects offered to your students, as you can see below.
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Surgery
OVERVIEW: General, thoracic, vascular, plastic, proctological, urological and neurological surgery. Pre and post-operative care of surgical patients. Indications, methods and results of the surgical treatment of major affections. Surgical pathology. Surgical emergencies. Basics of surgical technique. Basics of anaesthesia. Understanding of surgical affections with regard to indications for surgery or clinical therapeutic option.
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Internal Medicine III
OVERVIEW: Acquisition of knowledge about etiopathogenesis; clinical, radiological and anatomopathological diagnosis; therapeutics; prognosis; prevention and rehabilitation of the main digestive, kidney, metabolic, endocrine, dermatological, oncological, and haematological affections.
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Clinical Paediatrics I
OVERVIEW: Approach to topics related to the care provided to healthy children in their different stages (new-born, infant, preschool years, school years, and adolescent) and health-related actions focused on the most frequent problems in childhood.
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Forensic Pathology
OVERVIEW: Conceptual study of death and cadaveric phenomena. Natural deaths and violent deaths (criminal, suicidal and accidental). Legal aspects of death certificates. Forensic traumatology. Causation of injury. General pathology of injuries, disabilities and deaths caused by external energies.
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Orthopaedics and Traumatology
OVERVIEW: Pathology, clinic, treatment and prophylaxis of the most frequent and/or disabling congenital and acquired lesions of the locomotor system. Psychosocial and ethical implications.
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Psychiatry and Mental Health
OVERVIEW: Enabling students to value their participation in the field of mental health; establishing the special type of doctor-patient relationship that the mentally-ill person requires; identifying the symptoms associated with psychiatric syndromes, as well as the basis of their manifestations; recognizing and knowing how to deal with common mental disorders, as well as serious ones, and knowing how to refer patients to a specialist early on; recognizing and treating psychiatric conditions secondary to clinical illnesses and psychiatric emergencies.
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Obstetrics
OVERVIEW: Morphophysiology and semiology of pregnancy. Childbirth and puerperium. High-risk pregnancy. Foetal medicine. Obstetric emergencies. Pathological childbirth. Preventive obstetrics. Ethical implications.
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Gynaecology
OVERVIEW: Conceptualizing assistance to women by teaching the main gynaecological symptoms and relating symptoms to pathologies of the female genital area.
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Clinical Paediatrics II
OVERVIEW: Etiopathogenesis, diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, prevention, and rehabilitation of the most frequent affections in paediatrics.
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Forensic Medicine
OVERVIEW: Study of the relationship between Medicine and Law in the criminal, civil, administrative, and ethical fields. Using and valuing medical examinations in this context.
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Infectious and Parasitic Diseases
OVERVIEW: Microbiological, parasitological, clinical, and epidemiological aspects of infections caused by protozoa, helminths, fungi, bacteria, and viruses. Infectious emergencies. Accidents caused by venomous animals. Requesting and interpreting complementary examinations. Rational use of antimicrobials and antiparasitics. Community and healthcare-related infections. Infections in special populations (pregnant women, travellers, immunocompromised patients). Individual and collective prophylaxis.
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Ophthalmology
OVERVIEW: Pathophysiology, diagnosis and treatment of the main ocular pathologies in adults and children. The routine of the ophthalmological exam, with an emphasis on general practitioner training.
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Otorhinolaryngology
OVERVIEW: Main pathologies affecting the ears, nose, paranasal sinuses, pharynx, larynx, vocal cords, and facial nerve and their relationships with systemic diseases.
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It is important to note that this new agreement does not change the rules that have already been established for all the Brazilian students who seek equivalence at the Faculties of Medicine in Portugal.
Each year, the FMUL receives around 6 foreign students, and one of the conditions is that they have certified knowledge of the Portuguese language. Without language barriers and with established bridges, the exchange between Portugal and Brazil is officially open, between the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Lisbon and the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro.
All the Portuguese students who wish to have more information can contact the Group for International Cooperation.
JoanaSousa
Editorial Team
