Integrated Master in Medicine

The UCP Medicine course is an Integrated Master's Degree lasting six academic years. It has a highly innovative curriculum, resulting from collaboration with the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Maastricht, an institution of great international prestige. It also has a partnership for the clinical component with the Luz Saúde Group, one of the largest private health groups in Portugal. The course is supported by modern pedagogies, with a strong technological base, and seeks to guarantee the humanization of the medical profession.

The Medicine course will use student-centered teaching methodologies that foster learning autonomy, greater retention, and depth of knowledge, with proven clinical skills. The course is aligned with the Maastricht University teaching and evaluation model will have training at the best international level, with top teachers, and will be taught in English, with the clinical component in Portuguese. The course will allow access to international training mobility with other leading medical schools.

The Integrated Master in Medicine is taught by Católica Medical School, an academic unit of the Universidade Católica Portuguesa, and will take place at the Sintra Campus of the UCP, next to Tagus Parque, in a modern building endowed with exceptional study conditions and technological resources. This building has a vast area dedicated to research and will have a modern library. To support all those who study and work there will be a bar, a canteen and transport services.

The predominant scientific area of the cycle of studies is Medicine with the CNAEF 721 Classification - the first foundational area, according to Ordinance No. 256/2005, of March 16.

Higher education in Medicine is regulated at the European level, with a view to the recognition of the respective professional qualification among the Member States.

The Integrated Master in Medicine benefits from a partnership with Grupo Luz Saúde and the close partnership with Maastricht University, Administração Regional de Saúde de Lisboa e Vale do Tejo, I.P., Hospital Beatriz Ângelo and União das Misericórdias Portuguesas.

The degree is taught in Católica Medical School, at Sintra Campus, at the Hospital da Luz in Lisbon and other healthcare units and facilities of Grupo Luz Saúde, and Health Centres and Facilities of the Administração Regional de Saúde de Lisboa e Vale do Tejo, I.P., Hospital Beatriz Ângelo and healthcare units of União das Misericórdias Portuguesas.

Differentiating Features

The Católica Integrated Master in Medicine presents differentiating characteristics that make it unique and innovative, among which are:

• Promotion of excellence in medical education, through a curriculum with a pedagogical methodology based on problem-solving. This method, internationally validated in prestigious university centers, has proven its success and is subject to constant quality monitoring by the entity responsible for its initial development - Maastricht University - and by a structure specifically created for this purpose at the Católica Medical School (the Centre for Medical Education), with periodic evaluation reports of the teaching-learning-evaluation process, to be discussed internally and externally with the main stakeholders;
• Promotion of research with a culture of openness to the world, cultivating the transversality of knowledge based on the Christian humanist principles of UCP;
• A culture of proximity to and centrality of the person, in various aspects: teaching; research; community orientation;
• Opening of medical education to international students, as in other academic units at Católica.

These differentiating features of the Integrated Master in Medicine will make it possible to promote medical training based on both clinical competence and research capacity, particularly in translation research — of impact and application in health practices and policies. This is only possible through the teaching-learning-evaluation methodology of this course, associated with the goal of developing reflexive and critical thinking in scientific training, essential to the exercise, in excellence, of clinical practice.

Based on the experience of more than 50 years of the Maastricht University, this Integrated Master in Medicine seeks to respond to the needs of the practice of medicine in the 21st century, through the use of different and innovative pedagogical strategies and methodologies that translate into a unique curricular structure that promotes, namely:

• Curricular Units encompassing different scientific areas;
• Varied methodological features (including the Problem-based Learning – PBL) methodology;
• Use of different training techniques, using a simulation center of excellence, such as the simulation of contact with patients. In this simulation center continuous training in a series of medical procedures is foreseen, including not only communication aspects but also clinical evaluation;
• Emphasis on the teaching and practice of reflection throughout the course through specific pedagogical strategies of diagnosis (personal portfolio, progress exams, consultation, and reflection through simulation of contact with model patients/actors, etc.);
• A student-teacher ratio of two students per doctor is truly exceptional in a field where the national average is 7.53;
• Training in medical research, with an emphasis on clinical areas and translational research.

Other distinguishing features of this Integrated Master in Medicine are:

• Regarding teaching, the creation of a close relationship between professors and students, through a mentoring program;
• Regarding the curriculum, the introduction of research in the study plan of the Integrated Master in Medicine, through the creation of a 6th-year curricular unit, with the execution of a traineeship in scientific research.
• The emphasis on mandatory training for all professors in the teaching methodologies used, drawing on the experience of the Institute of Medical Education of the Maastricht University.

The learning objectives of the Integrated Master in Medicine include:

• Providing students with knowledge in the basic sciences, as support for the learning of clinical sciences and corresponding demonstration of skills;
• Providing students with the mastery of the necessary skills for the practice of Medicine, in order to critically approach clinical problems (developing critical thinking, communication, and information management skills);
• Promoting the acquisition of skills that allow the assessment of patients: carrying out a clinical history and respective physical examination, identifying the medical problem(s) and formulating an accurate diagnosis, indicating the causes and solutions;
• Training students in communication techniques that allow effective interaction with patients, families, medical staff and other healthcare professionals;
• Providing students with fundamental guidelines and concepts for the application of ethical principles, in all aspects of medical practice, and allowing them to reflect on relevant social issues;
• Preparing students for the effective use of information technologies, which allow the evaluation and critical interpretation of biomedical data, using the fundamentals of “data-science” and selecting the best treatment for patients;
• Enabling students to plan, explore and generate knowledge in health through research, in the context of Medicine, namely translational research;
• Enabling students with self-learning skills that allow the constant updating of knowledge throughout life;
• Technically preparing students for the practice of Medicine, through practical methodologies, using medical simulation.

The completion of the Integrated Master in Medicine requires the completion of 360 ECTS and the program has a duration of 6 academic years (12 semesters), following Article 3 of Decree-Law No. 74/2006 of March 24, under the language of Decree-Law No. 65/2018 of August 16.

In the first three curricular years, the completion of 180 ECTS corresponds to the first cycle of studies and grants students the degree of Bachelor in Basic Sciences of Medicine. The second cycle of studies has the objective of completing the remaining 180 ECTS, in the last three curricular years, and grants the degree of Master in Medicine.

Curriculum

1st Year

The human body in health and disease

• (Modular) Growth and Development I
• (Modular) Circulation and Breathing I
• (Modular) Regulation and Integration
• (Modular) Thinking and Doing I
• (Modular) Digestion and Defense I
• (Modular) Diabetes, Obesity, and Lifestyle
• (Semester) Bioethics
• (Semester) Christianity and Culture
• (Annual) Biostatistics and Epidemiology
• (Annual) Personal and Professional Development I

2nd Year

Integrating knowledge and skills: on the path to practice

• (Modular) Circulation and Breathing II
• (Modular) Growth and Development II
• (Modular) Elective I (options below)
• (Modular) Digestion and Defense II
• (Modular) Thinking and Doing II
• (Modular) Elective II (options below)
• (Semester) Ethics and Health Care
• (Semester) Health Law
• (Annual) Personal and Professional Development II

Optional

• (Modular) Global Health Fundamentals
• (Modular) From Cells and Tissues to Clinical and Research - Histopathology
• (Modular) Inflammation and Cardiovascular Disease - From Molecular Mechanisms to Clinics
• (Modular) Introduction to Biomedical Research
• (Modular) Psychiatric Disorders - Biological Basis and Translational Research

3rd Year

From theory to patient

• (Modular) Abdomen
• (Modular) Locomotor Apparatus
• (Modular) Circulation and Lungs
• (Modular) Psychopathology and Mental Health
• (Annual) Imaging
• (Annual) Pharmacology
• (Annual) Professional Behaviour Domain
• (Annual) Personal and Professional Development III

4th Year

Clinical Rotations

• (Modular) Internal Medicine Rotation
• (Modular) Surgery Rotation
• (Modular) General Practice and Family Medicine Rotation
• (Annual) Personal and Professional Development IV

5th Year

Clinical Rotations

• (Modular) Woman and Child Rotation
• (Modular) Neurosciences Rotation
• (Modular) Elective III
• (Annual) Personal and Professional Development V

Optional

• (Modular) Cardiac Imaging
• (Modular) Intensive Care
• (Modular) Prenatal Diagnosis
• (Modular) Autoimmune Diseases
• (Modular) Health Management and Policy
• (Modular) Antimicrobial Stewardship
• (Modular) Introduction to Translational and Clinical Research
• (Modular) Portuguese Sign Language
• (Modular) Emergency Medicine
• (Modular) Cognitive Neurosciences
• (Modular) Oncobiology/Oncology

6th Year

Internships

• (Modular) Health Care Participation (HELP)
• (Modular) Scientific Research Participation (SCIP)
• (Annual) Personal and Professional Development VI

Teaching Methods

In the Integrated Master in Medicine, students are encouraged to build their own way of learning, through the promotion of an active role in the teaching and learning process. Given the various teaching and assessment methodologies used, students can learn to systematically reflect on their journey and to develop autonomy and confidence from an early stage, thus approaching the current reality in clinical practice, also achieved with the ratio of 2 students per medical team, in clinical internships.

The program’s curricular structure deviates from the traditional structure of many national and European teaching institutions. The Integrated Master in Medicine is based on functional integrated modules, which include all basic disciplines, sustained by all relevant and fundamental scientific areas, organized in a modular sequential system. This structure is applied to the most significant curricular units of biological and biomedical nature. Scientific disciplines are anchored in specific themes and addressed in an integrated way. The program also strongly focuses on practical skills training, such as communication, clinical procedures, and image interpretation, which are transversal to all functional modules. Additionally, the creation of an annual portfolio allows the students to combine acquired knowledge with personal experiences. Further reflection on this portfolio enriches the educational experience of the curriculum.

Research also has a fundamental role in the Integrated Master in Medicine, through the close relationship between the teaching of Medicine and the guidelines of health research. This relationship allows the involvement of students in research projects, from their undergraduate to their postgraduate training, through several optional research-oriented courses.

The Integrated Master in Medicine is inspired by the syllabus and methodologies of Maastricht University, Católica’s academic partner. The “Maastricht Method” is characterized by a focus on small tutorial groups (with about 10 students) in which students have to deal with “real world” problems, set their own learning goals and lead each case’s research under professional supervision. This method is known as PBL - Problem-based Learning.

The Integrated Master in Medicine is taught in English — the privileged language for the study of Medicine internationally —, thus promoting an environment of cultural exchange and allowing clinical practice in other countries.