Department of Internal Medicine

Overview

The Department of Internal Medicine at Patan Hospital has been a cornerstone since its establishment in 1982. Aligned with the mission and goals of PAHS, the department is dedicated to delivering quality health services, fostering academic excellence, and instilling social responsibility in its graduates.

Goals and Activities

The department focuses on three main areas: service, education, and research.

Health Services

Out-Patient Services (OPD)

• General OPD: Available on all working days (Sunday-Tuesday, Thursday, Friday) through the Medical Referral Clinic (MRC) and extended OPDs (Patan Private Clinic – PPC and Patan Private Practice – PPP).
• Specialty Services: Include Cardiology, Pulmonology, Gastroenterology, Nephrology, Rheumatology, Hematology, Oncology, and Infectious Diseases.
• Special Programs:
• Chronic Myeloid Leukemia, Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor, Kidney Cancers, and certain types of Lung Cancer (Gleevec International Patient Assisted Program).
• Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus in children and adolescents (Life for a Child with Diabetes Program).
• Certain types of Breast Cancer (Max Access Solution for Breast Cancer).
• Patient Volume: Approximately 1500 patients per week.

In-Patient Services:

• General Beds: 152 beds.
• Private Cabin Beds: Available
• Specialty Units:
• Cardiology Unit: Offers both invasive and non-invasive services, including ECG, echocardiography, treadmill test (TMT), Holter monitoring, coronary angiography (CAG), percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), pacemaker implantation, and more. The unit includes a 7-bed coronary care unit for intensive cardiac care.
• Pulmonology & Critical Care Unit: Provides OPD services and inpatient care for critically ill patients in the medical ICU. Services include pulmonary function tests (PFT), bronchoscopy, transbronchial needle aspiration, and medical thoracoscopy.
• Gastroenterology Unit: Offers diagnostic and therapeutic services such as UGI endoscopy, colonoscopy, endoscopic ultrasonography, polypectomy, variceal band ligation, and more.
• Nephrology Unit: Provides OPD services on specific days and hemodialysis via 16 dialysis machines, with additional machines in the medical ICU. Continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) and renal biopsy services are also available.
• Rheumatology Unit: Patan Hospital is currently the only hospital in the country with a dedicated rheumatology unit. Out-patient services are available via general OPD on all working days and also via paying clinics on Sunday, Monday, and Thursday. The unit also offers special services like arthrocentesis, intraarticular injections, nail-fold capillaroscopy, musculoskeletal ultrasonography, and skin biopsy.
• Hematology Unit: Provides services for various benign and malignant hematolymphoid disorders. Besides in-house hematologic workups including bone marrow analysis, special tests like immunophenotyping, karyotyping, FISH, and molecular tests are done in collaboration with other labs. The unit offers outpatient, inpatient, day-care services, and PICC line insertion and care. It currently follows up with over 800 CML patients and others with AML, ALL, APML, MDS, AA, PNH, CLL, hairy cell leukemia, MM, lymphomas, thalassemia, sickle cell anemia, and hereditary spherocytosis.
• Oncology Unit: Involved in patient care across all oncology divisions including Breast, Gastrointestinal, Head & Neck, Lung, Bone, Soft Tissue Sarcomas, Gynae-oncology, and Uro-oncology. Both inpatient and day-care services are available.

Education

The department is involved in medical training from undergraduate to postgraduate and subspecialty levels:

• Undergraduate: MBBS
• Postgraduate: Runs the MD Internal Medicine residency program and provides short-term rotational training to MD residents from other disciplines like MDGP and Dermatology.
• Subspecialty Training: Conducts subspecialty fellowship courses in Rheumatology and Infectious Diseases, with an intake of two fellows in each stream.
• Additional Programs: Hosts an Internal Medicine quiz for students from various medical colleges and offers a primer course in musculoskeletal medicine to orient junior doctors towards common musculoskeletal and rheumatologic disorders.

Research

Several research activities are carried out by residents and faculty members, integrating research into service delivery to enhance patient care and medical education.