Grand opening of UMW branch in Walbrzych

A branch of the Medical University of Wroclaw was officially opened at the Angelus Silesius Academy of Applied Sciences in Walbrzych on September 20. In October, 50 students will begin studying for a medical degree.

- The opening of a branch of the medical faculty in Walbrzych is a historic moment for us," said Prof. Piotr Ponikowski, rector of the Medical University of Wroclaw. - We are doing this to improve the situation of doctors in Poland, and I think that it is the medical universities, which have the experience, staff and capabilities, that should educate doctors. I will immodestly say that we have both 70 years of experience and outstanding staff.

- After the pandemic, the discussion about the shortage of doctors gained momentum, and there was a requirement to increase the number of specialists without lowering the standards of education. However, this type of project requires broad cooperation of the entire community, so I was pleased to find a group of local government officials determined to succeed and two universities that said: "we can do it together and let's do it together." Wroclaw Medical University is the highest quality, just look at the evaluation results. It has an experienced academic staff and many outstanding practitioners, doctors. I believe that the presence of the UMW branch in Walbrzych will also be a pro-quality boost for our hospitals in the region," said Wojciech Murdzek, Secretary of State at the Ministry of Education and Science, who was present at the opening, stressing that the express pace at which the university branch was created deserves special recognition:

- There were many initiatives to open branches this year, and generally the State Accreditation Commission had long lists of objections. In this case, there were no objections and the application was approved on the very first attempt, and let me remind you that we are talking about a document that was four thousand pages long. This is a rarity on a national scale," added Wojciech Murdzek.

UMW Rector Prof. Piotr Ponikowski noted that the level of candidates for studies at the Walbrzych branch is very high. - We have 500 candidates for 50 places, and the lowest point level is 227, while in Wroclaw it is 240 points. This proves that the best candidates have come to study here. There is no doubt that together we will make medical history," he stated.

The dean of the Walbrzych branch, Prof. Beata Sobieszczanska, assured that the training process for future doctors will be identical to that in Wroclaw: - We guarantee young medical students who have chosen to study in Walbrzych that we will not deviate from it even by a millimeter.

In the Wałbrzych branch, as in Wrocław, lectures will be online, while exercises will be organized in stationary form (in the first year there are non-clinical and laboratory exercises). In the case of one of the more difficult subjects, anatomy, Wałbrzych students, like their colleagues in Wrocław, will learn the secrets of the human body with the help of a virtual dissection table, purchased by UMW for the branch. This teaching tool is extremely useful at the beginning, before the students take part in the dissection room classes that await them from the second semester.

Photo: Tomasz Walow