Tag: (NUMS)

Rawalpindi, January 10, 2023 (PPI-OT):Academic quality means how well an institution supports students in their learning: the teaching, the provisions available, how they are assessed, and the resources made available. Quality assurance is the process for verifying that the standards and quality of higher education provision meet agreed expectations.

The phenomenon of ‘Teachers Capacity Building’ is a continuous improvement process at an individual’s distinction to enter teaching until retirement. It is the responsibility of institutions to facilitate and provide opportunities to faculty members to update their knowledge and upgrade their skills to match and exceed national and international standards of student engagement and make their classrooms knowledge revealing, student centric and inclusive to give their students an experience of a life time in their academic journey.

A day’s session organized by Dr. Asma Saleem Qazi, Assistant Prof, Department of Biological Sciences (DBS), NUMS on Dec 20, 2022 at Seminar Hall of the Main Campus was facilitated by Dr. Erum Monis Deputy Director Quality Assurance. The session was attended by twenty-two faculty members.

The facilitator elaborated upon fundamentals of outcome based education and the significance of continuous Quality Assurance for analysis of the best possible use of resources, both human and teaching aids.

Analyzing different theories on the subject, various levels of learning prescribed under Blooms Taxonomy were discussed in detail for teaching and assessments, to learn with examples how successful institutions apply Quality Assurance and Outcome Based Education in their institutions and correlate with the perspective of Higher Education Commission, Pakistan announced from time to time.

The aim was to introduce best practices adopted by teachers around the globe. Through an open discussion in an interactive session, faculty members of DBS, being researchers of high caliber, were asked how their class room was different from conventional classrooms and to share one out of the box idea they had successfully implemented to ensure they let the students explore the best of their learning, researching, analysing and creative abilities.

Professor Dr Jawad Hassan, Head of DBS, invited Professor Dr Uzma Hassan, Head of Public Health Department as the guest of honor. She appreciated the idea of bringing out faculty out of their monotonous routine and share their teaching experiments with their fellow colleagues in a relaxed environment. A group photo was taken after distribution of certificates among the participants by the Professor.

The DBS departmental ‘Capacity Building and Resource Generation Committee’ aims to organize more of such programs to enhance the potential capacity of its faculty and members.

For more information, contact:
National University of Medical Sciences (NUMS)
The Mall, Rawalpindi, Pakistan
Tel: +92-51-9270677
Email: info@numspak.edu.pk
Website: http://numspak.edu.pk

Rawalpindi, December 29, 2022 (PPI-OT):A Community Work Project Anniversary of “Daring Not Deprived “was celebrated by NUMS Civic Society in Collaboration of NUMS Department of Psychology. Since 2020, Ms. Saira Javed (Lecturer Clinical Psychology, NDP/ Incharge Psychologist, N-TRC/ Convener Civic Society) has designed and directed a program for the inclusivity of differently abled person in collaboration of the CEO of Saaya Association of Disabled People Islamabad.

The “DND” event was held to recognize the contributions made by the students of the Department of Psychology who are also a part of NUMS Civic Society in highlighting the emerging challenges faced by differently abled individuals and helping them out. It adhered to the SDG 3 for “good health and wellbeing”, SDG 4 “quality education, SDG 8 “decent employment, and economic growth” as well as SDG 17 “Partnerships for the Goals”.

DND Journey has been presented by Students from the Department of Psychology. The project representatives from NUMS Civic Society from the Department of Public Health (Public Health Social Worker), Department of Psychology (Mental Health Social Worker) and Department of Allied Health Sciences (Medical Health Social Worker) had presented future plans.

The Chief Guest Mr. Asim Zafar (CEO Saaya Association) highly acknowledged the efforts of NUMS faculty and students in highlighting the needs of the differently abled individuals and eradicating associated stigma and taboo faced by them.

He further shared his personal experiences and elaborated the vision mission of Saaya Association to motivate new members of NUMS Civic Society. Where, Mr. Zafar specifically discussed the sufferings of polio patients, how his has made it possible for people with different impairments to access opportunities where they can reach their full potential and has carried out several wheelchair distributions ceremonies and training sessions for the general public, differently abled people and their families.

Lastly, he expressed his gratitude to NUMS for providing a ramp facility for wheelchair individuals. The take home message of the event was that we are all unique in our own capacities, and the only gap between the person and his goal is his willingness to learn. At the end, a cake cutting ceremony took place, appreciation certificates from CEO Saaya association were distributed among Daring Not Deprived team members and a NUMS souvenir was presented to the Chief.

For more information, contact:
National University of Medical Sciences (NUMS)
The Mall, Rawalpindi, Pakistan
Tel: +92-51-9270677
Email: info@numspak.edu.pk
Website: http://numspak.edu.pk

Rawalpindi, December 28, 2022 (PPI-OT):The Psychology Colloquial Series, NUMS Department of Psychology organized its 3rd Seminar on the topic ‘Borderline Personality Traits and Emotional Coping in Young Population’ on 3rd of November, 2022. The guest speaker for the occasion was nationally and internationally acclaimed Professor Dr. Fareed Minhas (Head of the Psychiatry Department, BBSH, Retd and Consultant, Tree House, and Rawalpindi).

The event was open to the public and approximately 30 people were in attendance. Professor Dr. Shazia Khalid (Head, NUMS Department of Psychology) welcomed the august guest speaker and extended gratitude to Professor Dr. Azam Chaudhary (Dean, SSH), Dr. Arif Mahmud, directors and students who graced the occasion with their presence.

Professor Dr. Fareed Minhas began the talk by introducing the three main interest groups ‘Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD),’ ‘Cognitive Dysfunctions,’ and ‘Childhood Traumas’ on which he has been working for the past few years.

Keeping in view the event’s topic, Professor Dr. Fareed Minhas apprised the audience that Borderline Personality Traits are present since childhood and that parenting plays a monumental role in the development of these traits. He elaborated that this disorder lies on the borderline of psychosis and neurosis and also overlap with mood disorders.

The learned guest speaker, while explaining the characteristics of BPD, pointed out that such individuals have less emotional skin, have excessive fear of abandonment, experience unstable relationships, have identity disturbance, and absolutely no impulse control. They are curious about gossips, crave attention, and suffer from recurrent suicidal thoughts.

In response to the queries of the audience on the biological role in the development of the traits and disorder, Professor Dr. Fareed Minhas shared that though the neurotransmitter ‘serotonin’ may be implicated in the manifestation of borderline personality problems, childhood experiences play an even more important role. The guest speaker also shared the research evidence related to the antecedents of this disorder.

He delineated that childhood traumas such as childhood sexual abuse and physical abuse may dispose a child to a series of cognitive dysfunctions and thereby lack of impulse control and emotional deregulation becomes the marked features.

He also pointed out that the earlier the age of abuse, more is the likelihood of the damage and that the disorder may exacerbate due to chronic stress. After highlighting the features and causes of borderline personality problems, Professor Dr. Fareed Minhas discussed about the intervention strategies, which can be employed to support the patients.

He advised that as psychologists we must be careful in the selection of our words. He stressed upon letting the concerned individuals in acknowledging their feelings, giving them space, and being transparent with them.

He pointed out that evidence-based therapies such as Cognitive Behaviour Therapy and Dialectical Behavioural Therapy have proved to be helpful in the management of Borderline Personality Traits. Lastly, Professor Dr. Fareed Minhas reiterated that mindful parenting can prevent the development of BPD. Later, the talk was followed by question answer session.

At the end of the event, Professor Dr. Shazia Khalid thanked the worthy guest speaker immensely for making time for the talk and shared the potential collaborative opportunities for advancing work on emotional coping and well-being.

For more information, contact:
National University of Medical Sciences (NUMS)
The Mall, Rawalpindi, Pakistan
Tel: +92-51-9270677
Email: info@numspak.edu.pk
Website: http://numspak.edu.pk

Rawalpindi, December 27, 2022 (PPI-OT):Students of Allied Health Sciences (CP, MIT, MLT) from semester 6th and 4th from Armed Forced Postgraduate Medical Institute have arranged one Day Symposium on ” Practicing Professional Ethics at Health Care Systems” under the mentorship of Ms. Saira Javed (Lecturer Clinical Psychology, NDP/ Incharge Psychologist, N-TRC) NUMS.

The main objective of this event was to promote the practice of professional ethics among healthcare systems. Recognizing the importance of being sensitive to ethical issues within everyday clinical practice and develop in the ability to effectively address the ethical concerns of patients, as well as participants in research is the first step towards professionalism.

In this regard group of students from 6th Semester presented 09 Systematic Review Articles developed on PRISMA protocols on following topics

1. Healthcare ethics of gender equality: the scoping and systematic review

2. The Importance and Necessity of Islamic work ethic in the health care settings in Pakistan

3. Unethical Experimentation: Violation of Human rights and International Criminal Law

4. Consequences of work stress on professional ethics in the medical profession.

5. Ethical dilemmas that medical students confront

6. Ethical Issues in Compliance with Religious Beliefs in Medical

7. Healthcare Ethics for Gender X

8. Ethical Dilemmas in Laboratory Medicine: A Systematic Review

9. An Introduction to Human Genome Editing Using the Crispr-Cas9

Technique, Ethical concerns and Guidelines

Whereas, a group of students from 4th Semester displayed their 05 original case studies via Role plays (Self Recorded Videos).

1. With g power comes great responsibility

2. Unprofessionalism of professionals

3. Basic Pillars of health care ethics

4. Hazards of Ethical Malpractices in a Laboratory Settings

5. Fake reporting and unethical lab practices

This event was chaired by Dr. Aneela Maqsood (Associate Professor, Behavioural Sciences Department/ Additional Director, National Centre for Research on Suicide Prevention) Fatima Jinnah Women University, Rawalpindi. Dr. Maqsood got really impressed by systematic reviews on different relevant topics which are need of the hour due to a variety of reasons, including increasing litigation, changes in complexities in medical practice and the importance of consumer courts.

Whereas, she highly appraised the ideas and skills of the students presented role play. She further appreciates Mentor for an excellent demonstration of the inculcated professionalism and innovative teaching methodology.

At, the end of session Chief Guest, Lt Col Shahzad Iqbal (GSO-1 Training and OIC BS AHS, AFPGMI) while appreciating Ms. Saira said, it is a pleasure to be part of this insightful symposium, which brings together students from different specializations of AHS to know about the significance of practicing professional Ethics in healthcare systems.

The symposium was held in compliance with SDG 3 “Good Health and Wellbeing”, SDG 4 “Quality Education” SDG 5 “Gender Equality”, SDG 8 ” Decent work and Economic Growth”, SDG 10 “Reduced Inequalities”, SDG 12 “Responsible Consumption and Production”, SDG 17″ Partnerships for the Goals”.

For more information, contact:
National University of Medical Sciences (NUMS)
The Mall, Rawalpindi, Pakistan
Tel: +92-51-9270677
Email: info@numspak.edu.pk
Website: http://numspak.edu.pk

Rawalpindi, December 23, 2022 (PPI-OT):The Quality Assurance (QA) Directorate, National University of Medical Sciences (NUMS), in collaboration with Green Star Social Marketing (GSM), organised a trickle-down training to promote and safeguard the sexual and reproductive health (SRH) of young students of NUMS.

‘Khud ko Pehchano’, a youth empowerment initiative of Green Social Marketing (GSM), Punjab Population Innovation Fund (PPIF) and Population Welfare Department (PWD), focused on better health outcomes by promoting sexual and reproductive health literacy (SRHL).

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed and worsened vulnerabilities in many countries’ health infrastructure and inequities in access to healthcare around the world, including for SRH. Universal health coverage (UHC) is crucial for rebuilding and strengthening national health systems and delivering quality health care to communities, and SRH care is key to achieving UHC in Pakistan.

A total of twenty master trainers from NUMS, trained through a formal training session on Oct 26, 2022, further taught NUMS students in seven onsite sessions held at the PWD campus. The health promotion training for students of NUMS was led by Dr Erum Monis, Dr Hina Shan, Dr Abdul Momin, Dr Shaista Aslam, and Ms Huzaifa Akram.

The trainers shed light on the family planning landscape in Pakistan, the latest statistics, knowledge, skills, and beliefs necessary to lead to physical, mental, and social well-being. Sexual and reproductive health awareness is an educational approach relevant to young peoples’ existing sexual and reproductive health needs and concerns. Education about SRH provides information and empowers young adults to protect themselves from sexually transmitted infections (STIs), such as syphilis, Hepatitis B and C, and AIDS.

Dr Abdul Momin, Assistant Professor, Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, introduced the basic knowledge about Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR). He talked about Sexual and reproductive health (SRH) as a globally recognised fundamental health concern and a basic human right, which is poorly addressed and seldom researched in the developing world.

Dr Shaista Aslam, Assistant Professor Department of Biological Sciences, highlighted how premarital screening and genetic counselling could prevent and manage medical and other health risk factors known to impact pregnancy outcomes. Dr Hina Shan, Assistant Professor Department of Public Health, talked about healthy timing and pregnancy spacing that reduces maternal and infant mortality, morbidity, and adverse pregnancy outcomes.

Ms Huzaifa Akram, Assistant Professor Department of Public Health, presented the modern methods of contraception, myths, and misconceptions about family planning. Ms Huzaifa shared the statistics on the proportion of young women reporting unintended pregnancy and the unmet need for contraception.

Dr Erum Monis, Deputy Director of Quality Assurance Dte, member Inquiry Committee Protection against Sexual Harassment at Workplace, highlighted Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and mitigation strategies. Dr Erum Monis explained how GBV, a phenomenon deeply rooted in gender inequality, continues to be one of the most notable human rights violations within all societies. Both women and men experience gender-based violence, but most victims are women and girls.

The efforts of Dr Erum Monis and Dr Hina Shan and faculty members were appreciated by Air Cdre Muhammad Ismail, SI (M), (Retd) Consultant Quality Assurance, and NUMS. Health literacy on SRH save lives and the future of young people as it is the self-perceived ability of an individual to access the needed information, understand the data, and appraise and apply the knowledge to informed decision-making for overall well-being.

For more information, contact:
National University of Medical Sciences (NUMS)
The Mall, Rawalpindi, Pakistan
Tel: +92-51-9270677
Email: info@numspak.edu.pk
Website: http://numspak.edu.pk

Rawalpindi, December 19, 2022 (PPI-OT):1st Annual Research Meet Up was organized on 16th and 17th November, 2022 at AFPGMI. Event was the brainchild of Ms. Saba Khurshid (Research Officer) but her dream wore the dress of reality under the umbrella of cooperation provided to her by whole management team of NUMS and AFPGMI.

Special thanks to Brig Tashfeen Bin Nazeer (Director Training) who was the Chief Organizer of this event along with team of organizers including Muhammad Waqas Ashraf (Manager NUMS Affairs), Ms Hina Riaz (Assistant Manager NUMS Affairs), Ms Aania Majeed (Manager IT) and our amazing management team of students from BS Allied Health Sciences.

Students of Allied Health Sciences and College of Nursing (AFPGMI), Department of Psychology, Biological Sciences and Social Sciences of Health, Human Nutrition and Dietetics (NUMS) presented their ideas in the form of oral and poster presentation.

A slew of segments were properly optimized to give the event a fragrance which the attendees will feel for a long time. Dr Sadaf Mumtaz, Professor of Physiology, Head of Department of Physiology, HITEC-Institute of Medical Sciences, Taxila was Session Keynote Speaker who enlightened the students on the importance of Research in contemporary world.

Closing ceremony was conducted on 17th Nov, 2022. Chief Guest for closing ceremony was Commandant AFPGMI, Maj General Ahsan Altaf, and TI (M). Shields were awarded for best papers and token of appreciation presented to Session Chairs, Co-Chairs and event organizers. 3 x best oral paper shields were awarded to the students as per following details:

Maj Sadaf Younis, CoN, AFPGMI

Labiqa Sohail, AHS, AFPGMI

Sidra Malik, CoN, AFPGMI

3 x best poster paper shields were awarded to the students as per following details:

Anosh Shahid, Fatima Zahra, Maryam Ahmad, Faiza and Mishal Khan (Department of Psychology, NUMS)

Lt Cdr Saima Noreen, CoN, AFPGMI

Rabia Shahid, AHS, AFPGMI

For more information, contact:
National University of Medical Sciences (NUMS)
The Mall, Rawalpindi, Pakistan
Tel: +92-51-9270677
Email: info@numspak.edu.pk
Website: http://numspak.edu.pk