Palliative Medicine Manipal Academy of Higher Education

Overview

The Department of Palliative Medicine and Supportive Care at KMC Manipal is the fourth department in the country and the first department in a private medical college in India offering MD Palliative Medicine training. Most of the MD Palliative Medicine programs in India are situated in cancer centres.

However, cancer only constitutes 1/3 of palliative care practice, and 2/3 of palliative care needs are in non-cancer conditions. The  Palliative Medicine programme from Manipal Academy of Higher Education  provides a unique advantage to the prospective trainees in terms of clinical exposure to cancer and non-cancer conditions. Moreover, the department is already offering subspecialty palliative care services in paediatric, renal and ICU settings. The scope of these services will be shortly extended to neurology, cardiology and pulmonology. 

Career

At present, there is a significant demand for MD Palliative Medicine specialists in India. An increase in cancer and chronic illnesses in India, the creation of many cancer centres and chronic care services, and the establishment of palliative medicine departments in medical colleges across India has created this demand. Moreover, the new CBME curriculum and AETCOM section of the MBBS curriculum taught predominantly by the palliative medicine specialists has also contributed to this demand. It facilitates employment opportunities for MD Palliative Medicine specialists after course completion.