Development of the family practice specialty training program over a 20-year period [1983-2002] in Kuwait

ABSTRACT

The study examined the evolution of the Family Practice Post graduate Training Program [FPSTP] in Kuwait during the period 1983 to 2002 and identified the main changes and achievements as well as limitations in order to identify ways to improve the program for the future. In a review of the main records of the FPSTP and manpower statistics in Qadsia, Kuwait Institute for Medical Specialization [KIMS] and Ministry of Health [MOH] covering the last 20 years, three years were selected for observational comparisons. These were 1987, the year of graduation of the first batch of Family Medicine Graduates [FMG], 1995 when the program was reactivated after the Iraqi invasion, and 2002. Data reviewed included numbers of graduates, year of graduation, sex and nationality. The study showed that the number of FMG has increased tremendously over the 20 year period, from 13 in 1987 to 152 in 2002, with the percentages of Kuwaitis increasing from 7.7% to 77%. The percentage of females also changed from 38.5% to 62%. This increase was also accompanied by the loss of FMG to attachments or posts other than clinical general primary care work. Steps have been taken to make the program local, with decreasing Royal College of General Practitioners [RCGP] participation in the courses and examinations. Training centers, however, have not increased since 1995, despite the rise in the numbers of trainers and examiners. The study revealed that FPSTP has exp and ed, with an increase in the number of FMG, in spite of the substantial shift away from family practice as a career for some graduates. There have also been improvements and additions to the curriculum in conformity with international postgraduate [PG] programs