Surgery in Malta pre-dates the coming of the Knights of St John when surgeons and physicians, at times Jewish, were recruited in medieval times, from neighbouring Sicily, and at times, from Spain, to see to the needs of the albeit small population inhabiting the Maltese islands.
On their arrival in Malta, the Knights, being both a Hospitaller order as well as a military one, established their first hospital in Birgu. This was manned by surgeons who had followed them from Rhodes. The Knights further established Malta as a healthcare centre of excellence through the introduction of formal medical education in 1676 with the founding of the School of Anatomy and Surgery by Grandmaster Cottoner. This was further strengthened by Grandmaster Pinto in 1771 with the foundation of the Collegio Medico.
The current Department of Surgery with its thirteen areas of specialty is an academic department within the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery. Our Department’s core activities of teaching, research and patient care are fully integrated to provide the best service possible. The thirteen areas of specialities are:
The curriculum delivered to third, fourth and fifth year students is mainly focussed on clinical attachments together with tutorials and lectures. However, our Department also regularly runs complementary short courses and seminars to better prepare final year students for their professional life. These include, but are not limited to:
We encourage postgraduate research at Masters and Ph.D. levels as well as beyond. Projects by Faculty alumni are varied, not limited to the local scenario and are often in collaboration with international institutions. Masters programmes offered by our Department currently include:
Furthermore, our Department regularly hosts the MRCS (Part 1) examination offered by the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh.