| History
Of The College  The
college was established in 1849 as
Queen's College, Galway. The Medical
School was one of the original faculties
when the college was founded.
The campus is located near the city
centre of Galway City, nestled along
the River Corrib on the western coast
of Ireland.
The Irish Universities Act in 1908
changed the name to University College,
Galway. In 1997, the name was updated
to National University of Ireland,
Galway and made a constituent university
of the National University of Ireland.
The university grew during the more
than 150 years since its founding,
and now serves a population of over
15,000 students. Expansion is currently
continuing, especially among medical
facilities, with a recently completed
Medical Education Centre and plans
for a new Human Biology Building and
Clinical Research Centre.
About the Medical School
 The
medical degree program curriculum
is five years in length.
Clinical contact with patients is introduced
at an early stage, but in the initial
years the emphasis is on the basic
sciences (Human Biology, Anatomy,
Physiology, Biochemistry, Pharmacology)
and cognitive sciences (Psychology,
Behavioural Sciences, Medical Informatics,
Ethics, Health Promotion) which together
provide a basis for understanding
modern health care delivery.
 In
the latter years of the program, the
emphasis is on the acquisition of
knowledge and skills of immediate
relevance to professional practice.
Teaching in this phase includes Clinical
Laboratory Sciences, Public Health,
and the Principles and Practice of
the major Clinical Disciplines. Through
bedside teaching, one-on-one mentorship,
the clinical skills laboratory, and
small group tutorials, students are
guided to learn the skills of: taking
a patient history, conducting an examination,
selecting appropriate investigations,
interpreting findings and formulating
plans of patient care. As they gain
experience, they assume greater responsibility
through rotations in affiliated hospitals
and in community practices.
In addition to teaching and the provision
of medical care, all departments are
engaged in research, often as interdisciplinary
collaboration between University and
Hospital.
The Teaching Hospitals
 The
main teaching hospital of the Medical
School is University College Hospital
Galway,a 500-bed referral and
tertiary-level hospital. UCHG is located
immediately adjacent to the main university
campus, facilitating the integration
of clinical and basic teaching.
Merlin Park Hospital, also
located in Galway City, is the second
designated teaching hospital.
Eight additional affiliated hospitals
throughout the region are linked to
the Galway Medical School.
In all, these ten hospitals affiliated
with the Medical School draw on a
catchment area with a population of
approximately one million people.
The hospital departments encompass
all of the important clinical and
laboratory disciplines, including:
Medicine, Surgery, Obstetrics and
Gynaecology, Paediatrics, Psychiatry,
Radiology, General Practice, the Subspecialties,
the Clinical Laboratory Departments
and the Specialist Diagnostic Units.
national university of ireland, galway
www.nuigalway.ie
nui galway faculty of medicine
www.nuigalway.ie/medicine
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