Dr Hein Yarzar Aung, Consultant Physician and Senior Clinical Lecturer for General Internal Medicine Yangon General Hospital, Myanmar
It was my great pleasure to attend such a world-class conference at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh in May. I was delighted to be one of the 2017 winners of the prestigious Brian Chapman Scholarship. The course was very interesting and all the speakers were excellent. The carefully selected topics were very up to date and invaluable for the comprehensive management of geriatric patients. After attending the course, I gained a lot of knowledge regarding management of the frail patient with cardiovascular diseases, care of the frail patient in the acute hospital, interpretation of funny blood results in the frail patient, the hospital-at-home programme and delivering health care services in care homes. I also had the chance to meet and discuss issues with other health care professionals from all over the world who are interested in geriatric medicine. The social programme including the Medical History Tour of Edinburgh was wonderful and I enjoyed it a lot. We also had a great course dinner at one of the best restaurants in Edinburgh; good food, nice chats and so it will last forever in our memories. The credit should go to the course organising committee and the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. An unforgettable international course indeed!
Dr Nirish Vaidya, MD resident in Internal Medicine, Nepal
I am currently a trainee in Internal Medicine in Nepal, a beautiful country in South Asia. The problems of elderly people in Nepal are apparently neglected. An increase in the size of the geriatric age group and related problems, few professionals trained in geriatric medicine and very little knowledge and services for the care of this age group have led to serious challenges for the new generation of physicians.
I was awarded the Brian Chapman Scholarship to attend the prestigious International Course in Medicine of the Older Adult in the historic Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh this May. I would like to thank the college and Dr Dorothy Chapman for awarding me this scholarship.
Right from the pick up from the airport to the last session of the course, the organisers left no stone unturned to make my stay in Edinburgh a comfortable and memorable one. The accommodation in the College was excellent. All the topics of the five-day course were up to date, informative, interactive and delivered by world-class speakers. The topics were very practical and related to the problems we face in daily clinical practice. I met delegates from around the world, especially from Australia, Sweden, UK and Canada. We had very good interaction during the lectures and breaks, sharing our experiences and problems. A medical history tour led by Dr Smith and a course dinner with the delegates and speakers covered the social aspect of the course which will stay in the memory for a long time.
This course is not just for geriatricians. The topics and discussions were very useful to internists and General Practitioners as well and I highly recommend this to everyone. Overall, this has been an excellent course and I brought home a lot of knowledge about the care and treatment of the older adult as well as wonderful memories of my dream visit to the historic city of Edinburgh.
*Department for International Development, UK Government