Subspecialization, a Cause of Concern for Neurosurgeons in Pakistan, an Opinion Piece and Open Discussion

Abstract

Specialization is a process of becoming an expert. In medicine, it was a long and gruelling journey that medical graduates embarked upon in their chosen field with pride and enthusiasm to become leaders. The specialists seen as the culmination of years of hard work and the marker of prestige. In the old days this distinction was very apparent between the barber surgeons who had little to no formal education and trained as an apprentice and the physicians, who had a university education, went on to become fellows of one of the Royal Colleges and were treated as experts. Eventually, as knowledge expanded, 65 specialities fragmented from medicine and surgery and as of today 31 subspecialties are recognized by the general medical council in the UK.1