The Jerusalem College of Technology (JCT) has launched new academic tracks in Internal Medicine and Pharmacy in order to respond to urgent needs arising in Israel’s healthcare system.
As part of JCT’s MA in Nursing, the new Internal Medicine track is designed for nurses with a bachelor’s degree who work in departments of cardiology, infectious diseases, pulmonology, intensive care, and others. The internal medicine specialization is expected to open pathways for promotions to management positions and salary increases for those health professionals. Courses span a wide variety of disciplines, including genetics, pain management, rehabilitation, patient- and family-centered communication, and more.
“Studying internal medicine as part of a master’s degree in nursing provides in-depth clinical knowledge of a wide range of diseases and treatment methods at a high academic level,” said Prof. Freda Ganz, Dean of JCT’s Faculty of Life and Health Sciences.
Internal medicine has taken on unprecedented importance during the pandemic due to a surging demand for high-level care to treat patients with complex illness under the overcrowding conditions of internal medicine wards. Further, many coronavirus patients who arrive at the hospital who are in moderate or mild condition already have other illnesses, which can cause their condition to rapidly deteriorate. Accordingly, hospitals have substantial need for nurses who possess the varied knowledge and skill set of an internal medicine background, which equips them to assess and care for those with complicated illness.
“Even after the condition of a coronavirus patient stabilizes and the patient is discharged from the hospital, further treatment and rehabilitation is needed offsite,” said Dr. Anat Romem, head of the MA in Nursing at JCT. “Therefore, in-depth knowledge of internal medicine is essential for nurses throughout the community, not only in the hospital setting.”
JCT’s new Pharmacy track, meanwhile, meets a pressing need in one of the fastest-growing professions in Israel’s health system. According to David Papo, chair of the Israel Pharmacists Association, Israel has a shortage of about 600 pharmacists in a continually growing deficit. Only two Israeli universities, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, offer a 4-year program BSc degree in Pharmacy and license from the Ministry of Health. During the first two years of the new degree, students will study in a dedicated track towards Pharmacy degree at JCT, followed by two additional years at Hebrew University’s School of Pharmacy.
“In the past, we would meet the pharmacist only behind the counter,” explained Dr. Sara Genut, head of JCT’s Pharmacy track. “In recent years, the profession has expanded significantly and has penetrated other realms. In hospitals, pharmacists have become key players in determining the drug treatment of patients. In the pharmaceutical industry, important roles have been set up for pharmacists, both as partners in drug development that will result in drug approval, and as quality controllers and supervisors of drug manufacturing and registration.”
“As a leading academic institution that trains professionals in the field of health, we have identified a significant opportunity to give the national-religious and Haredi populations a pathway towards entering the vital and evolving profession of pharmacy,” Ganz said.
