University of Sunderland hails progress on new medical centre of excellence

A university says it is making swift progress on a medical centre of excellence that will train the region’s next generation of healthcare workers.

The University of Sunderland says “work is well underway” on a new cadaveric base.

The hub, when completed, will form part of a newly-established school of medicine.

Bosses say it will also help provide “world-class training” for students across the Faculty of Health Sciences and Wellbeing, and offer learning opportunities for surgeons and surgical trainees already at work across the region.

Debs Patten, professor of anatomy at the university, said the new centre will make a major difference to students’ learning and, ultimately, the healthcare sector.

She said: “We deliver anatomy teaching to a range of healthcare education programmes across the Faculty of Health Sciences and Wellbeing, using a blended approach of virtual dissection, digital and clinical imaging, portable ultrasound and living anatomy, as well as using anatomical models.

“These learning resources are greatly appreciated by our students and staff, but undoubtedly, the inclusion of cadaveric anatomy will be of huge benefit to our institution and indeed the region.

 

 

“Anatomy is widely appreciated as being one of the most significant elements of medical education.

“Digital resources are highly effective educational tools but cannot reproduce the variability and complexity of the human body and for this reason, medical students and their educators consider cadaveric anatomy to be the gold standard for anatomy education.

“Most UK medical students will study cadaveric anatomy – in fact only a handful of UK medical schools do not offer cadaveric anatomy – but cadaveric provision for allied healthcare students is often limited.

“Our facility will offer cadaveric provision for our medical students and our allied healthcare students.”

Debs added the centre will also be used by those on other programmes including paramedicine, physiotherapy and nursing.

The new hub is being created thanks to the help of funding from the Sir James Knott Trust and the Garfield Weston Foundation.

Andrew Bumfrey, associate director of Newcastle’s Space Architects, which designed the new centre, added: “The project provides a great future for the teaching of anatomy.

“The new building will support a range of dedicated, learning environments for staff and students, influencing the education of future generations of doctors, nurses and other key healthcare workers.”