Career prospects

By means of the training course described, aimed at achieving the qualifying educational objectives of the degree class and the specific educational objectives outlined, the graduate in Medicine and Surgery intervenes in every activity inherent to the maintenance of the individual's state of health, as defined by the WHO (a situation characterised by complete physical, psychic and social well-being and not simply by the absence of disease). The graduate in Medicine is prepared to carry out his/her professional intervention at the highest level compatible with the structures and organisation of the place where he/she is working.
Graduates in Medicine and Surgery work as surgeons in various clinical, health and bio-medical professional roles and fields. The degree in Medicine and Surgery is also a requirement for access to medical specialisation schools.

The course prepares for the professions of surgeon in its various functional articulations.
The occupational outlets normally offered to the graduate in Medicine are provided by:

• Public and private clinics.
• Hospitals and specialist centres.
• Universities and research centres.
• National and international health and humanitarian organisations.

Single-cycle degree graduates must have acquired and deepened the inter-relationships existing between the contents of the basic sciences and those of the clinical sciences, in the dimension of complexity that is inherent to the state of health of the healthy or sick person, having particular regard to the interdisciplinary nature of medicine.

They must also have developed and matured a highly integrated approach to the patient, critically assessing not only all the clinical aspects, but also devoting special attention to the relational, educational, social and ethical aspects involved in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of the disease, as well as in the rehabilitation and recovery of the highest possible degree of psychophysical well-being.
The professional profile of graduates should include knowledge of:

• behaviour and behavioural attitudes of medical knowledge;
• fundamental notions and methodology of physics and statistics useful for identifying, understanding and interpreting biomedical phenomena;
• fundamental biological organisation and basic biochemical and cellular processes of living organisms;
• basic processes of individual and group
• behaviour mechanisms of transmission and expression of genetic information at the cellular and molecular level;
• structural organisation of the human body, with its main anatomical-clinical applications, from the macroscopic to the microscopic level up to the main ultrastructural aspects and the mechanisms through which this organisation takes place during embryonic development and differentiation;
• essential morphological characteristics of the systems, apparatuses, organs, tissues, cells and sub-cellular structures of the human organism, as well as their main morpho-functional correlates;
• biochemical, molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying pathophysiological processes;
• fundamentals of the main laboratory methods applicable to the qualitative and quantitative study of pathogenetic determinants and biological processes of significance in medicine
• how the various organs of the human body function, their dynamic integration into apparatuses and the general mechanisms of functional control under normal conditions;
• main functional findings in healthy humans;
• fundamentals of the main methods of diagnostic imaging and the use of radiation, principles of the applications of biomedical technologies to medicine.
• of the organisation, structure and normal functioning of the human body, with the aim of maintaining the state of health of the healthy person and the understanding of pathological changes;
• the causes of diseases in man, interpreting the fundamental molecular, cellular and physiopathological pathogenetic mechanisms;
• the fundamental biological defence mechanisms and pathological mechanisms of the immune system and knowledge of the relationship between microorganisms and the host in human infections, as well as the relevant defence mechanisms;
• to correctly apply the methodologies to detect clinical, functional and laboratory findings, interpreting them critically also from a physiopathological point of view, for the purposes of diagnosis and prognosis and the ability to assess cost/benefit ratios in the choice of diagnostic procedures, paying attention to the requirements of both correct clinical methodology and the principles of evidence-based medicine;
• systematics of the most relevant diseases of the various apparatuses, from the nosographic, etiopathogenetic, physiopathological and clinical point of view, in the context of a unitary and global vision of human pathology and the ability to critically evaluate and correlate the clinical symptoms, physical signs, functional alterations detected in humans with anatomopathological lesions, interpreting their mechanisms of production and deepening their clinical significance;
• of clinical reasoning suitable for analysing and solving the most common and relevant clinical problems of both medical and surgical interest, and the ability to evaluate epidemiological data and know how to use them for health promotion and disease prevention in individuals and communities;
• of the principles on which the analysis of the person's behaviour is based and adequate experience, gained through in-depth and continuous interactive teaching experience in the field of doctor-patient relations and communication, in the importance, quality and appropriateness of communication with the patient and his/her family members, as well as with other healthcare professionals, in the awareness of one's own and others' values as well as the ability to make appropriate use of methodologies oriented towards information, education and health education and the ability to recognise the main alterations in behaviour and subjective experiences, indicating preventive and rehabilitative therapeutic directions;
• of anatomopathological pictures as well as cellular, tissue and organ lesions and their evolution in relation to the most relevant diseases of the various apparatuses and the knowledge, gained also through participation in anatomopathological-clinical conferences, of the anatomopathologist's contribution to clinical decision-making, with reference to the use of histopathological and cytopathological diagnostics (including stroke and oncocytological diagnostics), including with biomolecular techniques, in the diagnosis, prevention, prognosis and therapy of diseases of the individual patient, as well as the ability to interpret anatomopathological reports
• the ability to propose, in a correct manner, the various diagnostic imaging procedures, assessing their risks, costs and benefits and the ability to interpret diagnostic imaging reports as well as knowledge of the indications and methodologies for the use of radioactive tracers and also the ability to propose, in a correct manner assessing their risks and benefits, the therapeutic use of radiation and knowledge of the principles of radiation protection; of the main and most up-to-date laboratory diagnostic methodologies in clinical, cellular and molecular pathology, as well as the ability to propose, in a correct manner, the various laboratory diagnostic procedures, assessing their costs and benefits and the ability to rationally interpret the laboratory data;
• of the physio-pathological, anatomo-pathological, preventive and clinical problems concerning the broncho-pneumological, cardio-vascular, gastro-enterological, haematopoietic, endocrine-metabolic, immunological and uro-nephrological systems, providing their aetiopathogenic interpretation and indicating their diagnostic and therapeutic directions, and identifying the conditions which, in the above-mentioned areas, require the professional contribution of the specialist,
• the ability to recognise the most frequent otolaryngological, odontostomatological and oral cavity, locomotor and visual apparatus diseases and skin and venereal diseases, indicating their main prevention, diagnosis and treatment guidelines and the ability to identify the conditions which, in the aforementioned areas, require the professional contribution of the specialist; the ability to recognise, by means of physiopathological, anatomical and clinical study, the main alterations of the nervous system and psychiatric pathologies and social contexts, providing their aetiopathogenetic interpretation and indicating their diagnostic and therapeutic directions;
• the ability and sensitivity to place specialised problems in a broader view of the person's general state of health and his/her general wellbeing needs, and the ability to integrate symptoms, signs and structural and functional alterations of individual organs and apparatuses into a global and unitary assessment of the individual's overall state of health, aggregating them from a preventive, diagnostic, therapeutic and rehabilitative
• perspective knowledge of the physiological changes of ageing and of the problems of the disease state in the elderly and the ability to plan medical and healthcare interventions in the geriatric patient;
• the ability to analyse and solve clinical problems of an internist, surgical and specialist nature, assessing the relationships between benefits, risks and costs in the light of the principles of evidence-based medicine and diagnostic-therapeutic appropriateness
• the ability to analyse and solve clinical problems in the oncological order by addressing the diagnostic and therapeutic procedure in the light of the principles of evidence-based medicine, as well as knowledge of pain therapy and palliative care;
• the ability and sensitivity to apply the essential principles of health economics in medical decisions, with specific regard to the cost/benefit ratio of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, hospital-territory therapeutic continuity and organisational appropriateness;
• knowledge of the fundamental concepts of the human sciences with regard to the historical evolution of the values of medicine, including epistemological and ethical ones the ability and sensitivity to critically evaluate medical acts within the healthcare team;
• knowledge of the different classes of drugs, of the molecular and cellular mechanisms of their action, of the basic principles of pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics and knowledge of the therapeutic uses of drugs, variability of response in relation to gender, genetic and pathophysiological factors, pharmacological interactions and the criteria for defining therapeutic regimes, as well as knowledge of the principles and methods of clinical pharmacology, including pharmacosurveillance and pharmacoepidemiology, side effects and toxicity of drugs and substances of abuse
• knowledge, from the preventive, diagnostic and rehabilitative point of view, of the problems relating to the state of health and illness in the neonatal age, childhood and adolescence, insofar as they fall within the competence of the non-specialist physician, and the ability to identify the conditions requiring the professional contribution of the specialist and to plan essential medical interventions in relation to the main health problems, in terms of frequency and risk, inherent in paediatric specialist pathology
• knowledge of the physiopathological, psychological and clinical problems concerning fertility and female sexuality and its dysfunctions from a medical sexological point of view, natural and assisted procreation from an endocrine-gynaecological point of view, pregnancy, prenatal morbidity and childbirth, and the ability to recognise the most frequent forms of gynaecological pathology, indicating the fundamental preventive and therapeutic measures and identifying the conditions that require the professional contribution of the specialist;
• knowledge of physiopathological, psychological and clinical problems concerning male fertility and the evaluation of the male gamete, male sexuality and its dysfunctions from a medical sexological point of view, natural and assisted procreation from an endocrine-andrological point of view, the ability to recognise the most frequent forms of andrological pathology, indicating the fundamental preventive and therapeutic measures and identifying the conditions that require the professional contribution of the specialist;
• the ability to recognise, in the immediacy of the event, the clinical situations of emergency and urgency, carrying out the necessary acts of first aid, in order to ensure survival and the best possible care, and knowledge of how to intervene in disaster situations
• knowledge of the basic norms for maintaining and promoting the health of individuals and communities and knowledge of the norms and practices for maintaining and promoting health in the workplace, identifying situations of specialised competence, as well as
• knowledge of the main legislative norms governing health organisation and the ability to indicate the principles and applications of preventive medicine in the various and articulated communities knowledge of the deontological rules and those related to high professional responsibility, critically assessing the ethical principles underlying the various possible professional choices and the ability to develop an interdisciplinary and trans-cultural mental approach, also and above all in collaboration with other figures of the healthcare team, in-depth knowledge of the rules and dynamics characterising team work as well as adequate experience in the general organisation of work, connected with a sensitivity to its characteristics, to bioethics and the history and epistemology of medicine, to the relationship with the patient, as well as to community medicine issues, also acquired through direct experience in the field a knowledge of the characterising aspects of the multi-ethnic society, with specific reference to the variety and diversification of values and cultural aspects;
• an in-depth knowledge of the technological and biotechnological development of modern bio-medicine, including knowledge of the principles of scientific research in the bio-medical and clinical-specialist areas, the ability to research, read and interpret the international literature in order to plan research on specific topics and to develop a mentality of critical interpretation of the scientific data
• adequate experience in independent study and in the organisation of their own continuing education and the ability to carry out bibliographical research and to keep up to date, the ability to critically read scientific articles deriving from their knowledge of scientific English, enabling them to understand the international literature and to keep up to date;
• written and oral proficiency in at least one language of the European Union, in addition to Italian;
• computer skills useful for the management of information systems of the services, and for their own self-training;
• adequate knowledge of family medicine and the territory, also acquired through practical experience in training in the field.

Graduates must be able to communicate their conclusions, knowledge and underlying rationale clearly and unambiguously to specialists and non-specialists, as well as, in the manner required by the circumstances, to their patients.
To this end, graduates:
1) know how to listen carefully to extract and synthesise relevant information on all issues, understanding their content, and exercise communication skills to facilitate understanding with patients and their relatives, enabling them to share decisions as equal partners.
2) communicate effectively with colleagues, the community, other sectors and the media, and know how to interact with other professionals involved in patient care through efficient teamwork.
3) will demonstrate a good sensitivity to cultural and personal factors that improve interactions with patients and the community.
4) will know how to deal with critical communication situations, such as communicating serious diagnoses, discussing sensitive topics related to sexual and reproductive life, and end-of-life decisions.