Department of Rheumatology

Overview

Rheumatology-related Mission:

Providing state of the art care for rheumatology patients and turning research into better arthritis care is our mission

Objectives:

Our objectives are to find ways to prevent, cure and heal bone and joint related diseases by:

  • Establishing FMH as a centre of excellence for the provision of best care possible to treat musculoskeletal diseases and pain management, along with arthritis research.
  • Supporting collaborative research to improve the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of bone and joint diseases and to discover cures.
  • Training and promoting young rheumatologists, scientists and researchers.

Apart from teaching, training and research, we provide a range of Rheumatology services for the management and treatment of different Rheumatologic conditions. For example,

  • Early Arthritis diagnosis and management
  • Osteoporosis screening and management
  • Treatment programmes for: Rheumatoid arthritis, Psoriatic arthritis, Ankylosing Spondylitis, Polymyalgia rheumatic, Gout, Osteoarthritis, Lupus, connective tissue disorders, Vasculitis, Fibromyalgia , soft tissue rheumatism and pain disorders, Nerve pain, neck pain, back pain, Fibromyalgia, and many other musculoskeletal disorders

Faculty

Dr. Muhammad Haroon
MBBS, MRCP, Ph.D, FACR (Rheumatology), FRCP, MMedSc,
CSCST (Rheumatology), CSCST-GIM
Consultant/ HOD

Dr. Saira Elaine Anwer Khan
MBBS, MRCP
Assistant Professor

Dr. Shabnam Batool
MBBS, FCPS (Medicine), FCPS (Rheumatology)
Senior Registrar

Dr Sadia Asif
Senior Registrar

Dr Naveed Aslam 
Chief Resident Fellow

Dr Asad Ullah Khan
Post Graduate trainee Fellow

Dr Muhammad Faiq
Post Graduate trainee Fellow

Dr Farhan Bashir
Post Graduate trainee Fellow

Dr Zia Uddin
Post Graduate trainee Fellow

Head of Department – Dr Muhammad Haroon:

Degrees/Certifications:

MB (KE), MMedSc (Ireland), PhD (Ireland), CSCST (Rheum), CSCST (GIM),

FRCPI (Ireland), FRSM (UK), FFSEM (Ireland), FACR (USA)

Biographical Sketch

  • Muhammad Haroon graduated in Medicine from King Edward Medical College, Lahore. He completed his basic specialist training from Royal College of Physicians of Ireland through rotations in different University Hospitals before embarking on higher specialist training in Rheumatology. He subsequently completed his dual fellowships in Rheumatology and Internal Medicine through Irish Committee on Higher Medical Training of Royal College of Physicians.
  • He undertook a period of research at St Vincent’s University Hospital Dublin under the supervision of Prof Oliver FitzGerald, and also with Prof Robert Winchester at Columbia University Medical Centre, New York, USA – PhD degree. He has developed a special interest in clinical and genetic research in Psoriatic Arthritis and Spondyloarthropathies.
  • He has authored so far, >50 peer-reviewed articles in international scientific Journals as a first author, and has presented >50 abstracts as first author in different national and international rheumatology meetings.
  • He also worked as a Staff Physician in Rheumatology Department, Bone and Joint Unit, St Vincent’s University Hospital Dublin. From 2013-2018, he worked as a Consultant Rheumatologist in the Department of Medicine at University Hospital Kerry and also served as a Clinical Senior Lecturer at University College Cork. He also served as a Chair of the department of Medicine at this University Hospital. He was the department of medicine research lead at University Hospital Kerry. He has established the National Psoriatic Arthritis Registry of Ireland, which he served as the national lead. He has been involved in a number of International clinical research projects, and was also on national advisory board panels. He has been a recipient of various national and international awards. He has recently returned back to Pakistan with a passion to provide state of the art care for rheumatology patients and also to turn research into better arthritis care.

Awards

  • Research Paper of the Year – Annual Irish Healthcare Awards (Special Commendation) – November 2015
  • Young Investigator of the Year award 2013 – Irish Society for Rheumatology
  • Rheumatology Innovation Award 2013 by British Society for Rheumatology Birmingham, UK –  April 2013
  • Best Poster presenter award at Irish Society for Rheumatology Annual meeting October – 2013
  • No.1 in the Highest Ranking Abstracts at GRAPPA annual Symposium at Toronto, Canada – July 2013
  • Best Poster Presenter award at Irish Society for Rheumatology annual meeting 2010

Certifications

  • Rheumatology
  • Internal Medicine

Training Program

Rheumatology: Medical Student Elective Rotation Program

Program Lead: Dr Muhammad Haroon

Duration: 4 weeks

Availability: Year round

No. of Students: 1

Prerequisite

Open to all medical students. Completion of some core clerkships.

Objectives

To provide students with extensive clinical experience designed to enhance their skills in evaluating and diagnosing patients who present with symptoms of a musculoskeletal or rheumatic nature and autoimmune disorders.

Description

Students actively participate in all outpatient clinics to ensure a broad and comprehensive experience. Where pertinent to our training goals, students will also have the opportunity to evaluate inpatients. There will be no night call or weekend call.

Emphasis will be placed on history-taking and the physical examination. Students will develop basic understanding in the evaluation of and interpretation of immunological studies performed on blood specimens, pertinent imaging studies, and synovial fluid analysis.

Evaluation

Evaluations will be carried out at the end of the rotation.

Fellowship Program

Rheumatology Post Graduate Fellowship Program

Program Lead: Dr Muhammad Haroon

Duration: 2 Years

Availability: Twice a year

No. of Students: 3-5

Prerequisite

Completion of FCPS medicine

Objectives

The aim of 2 years FCPS training program in Rheumatology is to train residents to acquire the competencies of a Specialist in the field of rheumatology so that they can become good clinicians, teachers, researchers and administrators after completion of their training.

Description

Emphasis will be given to have intense exposure to attain 4-competencies, such as

  • Clinical: Extensive closely monitored clinical experience designed to enhance trainee’s skills in evaluating, diagnosing and managing patients who present with symptoms of a musculoskeletal or rheumatic nature and autoimmune disorders.
  • Teaching: Teaching undergraduate and postgraduate students
  • Research: Trainees will be guided to develop good understanding of research methodologies and through our ongoing national and international collaborations engage in research projects and to help enhance evidence based medicine.
  • Administrative: Trainees will also be helped to improve their administrative/managerial skills through participation in different committees and roles.

This Fellowship program is approved by College of Physicians and Surgeons of Pakistan

Evaluation

Evaluations will be carried periodically throughout their rotation.

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