Introducing UTAR’s Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS)
The Faculty is devoted to provide a conducive environment for the acquisition of knowledge and skills for effective clinical practice; develop values and attitudes of dedication, ethics and professionalism in the delivery of healthcare; and produce graduates who would serve and improve the quality of life of the community. The Faculty aims to build a team of dedicated educators and support staff to produce caring and competent health professionals; implement an effective learning model with extensive use of ICT; establish and nurture an innovative research and development culture; and carry out community and social responsibilities.
The Faculty has also established five distinguished research centres namely Centre for Research on Non-Communicable Diseases, Centre for Research on Communicable Diseases, Centre for Stem Cell Research, Centre for Cancer Research, Centre for Research in Traditional Chinese Medicine. These centres for research aim to provide state-of-the-art facilities and to develop integrated research programmes for fundamental research; to encourage all academic staff and graduate students to contribute towards a vibrant research culture and nation building; to promote multi-disciplinary research activities from the advancement of knowledge to the translation of basic research findings into clinical benefits and improvement in the quality of healthcare in Malaysia. The research centres also collaborate with the community, industry and the government to provide innovative solutions and to facilitate knowledge transfer.
MBBS Degree
The UTAR MBBS degree is a 5-year programme which follows a systemic and integrated approach that aim to equip our graduates with not only good clinical skills but also effective communication skills to function as competent and caring doctors. We follow MQA guidelines which recommend horizontal and vertical integration of curriculum. A vertical curriculum links knowledge from one lesson to the next across a programme of study, while a horizontal curriculum integrates knowledge across different classes or disciplines. Ethical values, professionalism and moral responsibility to both patients and the community will be instilled in the UTAR graduates. Importantly, there are Personal and Professional Development and elements of Medical Humanities being integrated throughout the whole 5 year programme (e.g. Mindfulness workshop, Silent Mentor Programme, Sun Tzi’s Art of War & Business, Special Institution and Home Visits etc). We also incorporate some unique features into our MBBS programme which includes stand-alone Applied Laboratory Medicine posting and online-based module from Institute for Healthcare Improvement website and Soft Skills Development, which our students are all equipped with and given certificate for Soft Skills by UTAR Soft Skills Department. We have produced 8 batches of graduates with a total number of 342 graduates to date. All our graduates were successfully recruited for housemanship and some have moved on to become specialists.
Nursing Degree
Worried about getting infected with virus? Want to learn how to prevent and manage infections and diseases? Want to learn how to look after yourselves and your loved ones? You can learn all these by joining the Bachelor of Nursing (Honours) from the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS) in UTAR: to learn about diseases, how to prevent and manage diseases, and many more. UTAR’s FMHS’s Bachelor of Nursing (Honours) was established since 2010. The 135-credit programme is approved by the Malaysian Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) and is fully accredited by the Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA) and the Malaysian Nursing Board (LJM). Since its establishment, the Department of Nursing has been producing good quality graduates, who now work in both local and international health care facilities. With faculty members from various expertise and experiences, students will be guided to be an all-rounder. It is expected of graduates from the programme to be equipped with good knowledge, good critical thinking skills, safe skills and practices, and exceptional attitude to provide competent care to patients and their care givers. Also, graduates will be able to continue to adapt to current issues in nursing, improve their professional development, and to face challenges and opportunities in the nursing profession through life-long learning skills.
Physiotherapy Degree
Physiotherapy degree in UTAR was established in 2011. The programme has produced over 330 graduates over the years. With the rate of employment of more than 90%, our graduates are highly employable in hospitals and centres across Malaysia and Singapore. This programme is accredited by the Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA) and periodically moderated for quality by a panel of external examiner from the University of Hong Kong. Physiotherapy students from UTAR undergo extensive hours of internship in various settings including hospitals, clinics, and rehabilitation centres. Students are also exposed to multiple disciplines mainly musculoskeletal, cardiopulmonary, neurology, geriatrics, women and men’s health, and sports rehabilitation. Other than offering internships, UTAR builds partnerships with industry advisors, field experts, and CEOs who provide constructive feedback to students. Physiotherapy Department of UTAR also actively collaborates with the international and local industries partners in organizing webinars, talks and workshops to benefit the students, staff, clinicians as well as the public on health-related topics.
Physiotherapy centre
Traditional Chinese Medicine
Traditional Chinese Medicine degree in UTAR was established in 2011. To date, the Department of Chinese Medicine has produced 170 Chinese Medical alumni. Our programme emphasises on the knowledge and application of Chinese Herbal Medicine, Acupuncture and Tuina. We have strong linkage with overseas partners and local partners for clinical training, research, student and staff exchange.
The second phase of the UTAR hospital project comprises a Western Medicine building with 250 beds is estimated to ready by June 2023. Subspecialty services in Medicine such as Oncology, Gynaecology, Paediatrics, Dermatology and Rehabilitation are also in the planning stage. We have an education centre in the Medicine and TCM block to cater for clinical teaching and learning. On top of this, we will provide a huge placement for clinical training in future to produce good quality graduates.