[WATCH] University medical students sound warning: Barts students will strain Mater Dei resources

Students from Barts medical school in Gozo who will perform clinical practice at Mater Dei Hospital will stretch the limited resources, university medical students have warned.

Omar Chircop, president of the Malta Medical Students Association (MMSA), said that concerns raised in a letter sent to Health Minister Chris Fearne on 20 September remained unaddressed up to this day.

The warning was sounded at a press conference at the University of Malta on Friday afternoon, which was attended by medical students and hosted by the University Students' Council (KSU) in collaboration with MMSA.

Foreign students at Barts were initially expected to have practice sessions at Gozo General hospital but due to limited patient numbers and a delay in the completion of the hospital, clinical rotations will be carried out at Mater Dei instead.

“There is a contract between Barts and the ministries concerned. We saw a portion of it but the relevant details are blacked out,” Chircop said.

The student leader said the letter to Fearne warned that Mater Dei’s limited resources will be further strained to the detriment of students, consultants, and patients.

“We’re asking for complete transparency and reassurances,” Chircop said.

Malta Medical Students Association President Omar Chircop. (Photo: James Bianchi/MediaToday)

He added that 18 Barts students per medical course year meant that Mater Dei would now have to cater for a further 100 students and that the hospital library and simulation rooms only catered for a maximum of 14 students at a time.

“Is this sustainable? This situation has been going on for five years now — we have been asking for meetings and have been met with delays and false promises. We want reassurances now before the condition of our student members starts deteriorating,” Chircop said, insisting that such a situation was propagated for the express purpose of mollifying the paying students for a private service.

“For certain specialties, Maltese students require the tutelage of a special consultant. If a group of Barts students altogether take up the time of one of these specialists, we will be missing out,” Chircop said, adding that this was worrying if Malta aimed to produce the next generation of good expert doctors. 

Barts will be lending prestige to Steward Healthcare, the private consortium that took over the €200 million privatisation deal for the Gozo, St Luke’s and Karen Grech hospitals. Steward is itself banking on attracting medical tourists to the Maltese islands.

Barts students will start their clinical experience at Mater Dei on 7 October. The MMSA lamented that, so far, no assurances have been given.