Recognition soon for Polish medical degrees

The Star PUTRAJAYA: Malaysian students wishing to pursue medical studies will soon have another option.
The Malaysian Medical Council (MMC), the main body responsible for evaluating and according recognition to foreign institutes, is expected to add Poland to its list of destinations for medical studies.
It is believed that the MMC has so far conducted two visits to three institutes in the country, the first in June last year and the last one as recently as a month ago.
The three institutes are the Medical University in Lodz, the Faculty of Medicine of University of Krakow and the Medical Academy of Warsaw.
However, it is said that only one of the three – most probably, the Medical Academy of Warsaw – would be accorded recognition this year while two others would have to wait.
Health Ministry director-general Tan Sri Dr Ismail Merican, who is also MMC president, confirmed that the council would be according recognition to Poland’s medical degrees.
“We have visited the institutes in Poland and an approval is pending. Hopefully, it will be this year,” he said, but declined to name the institutes.
Recently, the Public Service Department had announced that it would be sending its scholars to Poland and the Czech Republic for this year’s medical study intake.
So far, Poland is not included in the list of countries under the Second Schedule of the Medical Act 1971, which currently has 333 recognised institutes in, among others, Egypt, Australia, Ireland, Russia and Indonesia.
Deputy Head of the Polish mission in Malaysia Slawomir Krakowski confirmed that the MMC had conducted visits to the three institutes mentioned.
“Our embassy has yet to receive the announcement of the Government’s final decision. But we do know there is already a first batch of students from Malaysia ready to pursue medical courses in Poland,” he said.
The three Czech Republic medical institutes recognised are the First Faculty of Medicine at Charles University in Prague, the Faculty of Medicine at Charles University in Hradec Kralove and the Faculty of Medicine, Palacky University, Olomouc.
Dr Ismail also confirmed that there were currently no universities in Romania recognised by the Government despite advertisements in newspapers.