Dr. Sergey Gasparyan is one of the many physicians who was able to make a difference in his community after participating in FAR’s Continuing Medical Education Program (CME). We were fortunate to catch up with Dr. Gasparyan in September 2009, during his visit to Yerevan as part of the CME Program.
Born in Kapan in Syunik, Sergey completed his studies in 1998 and was employed as a pediatrician in the hospital of town Kajaran, in his native region. “At the beginning of 1990s, during the Karabagh War there was urgent need for anesthesiologist in our region,” remembered Sergey. Therefore, in 1992, Sergey decided to participate in a six-month training program at the National Heath Institute in Armenia, receiving qualification as an anesthesiologist with an expertise in resuscitation.
After returning to Kapan, Sergey worked at the local health center as an anesthesiologist, and was given the opportunity to be a part of our CME program. Commenting on the program, Sergey noted “One of the noticeable differences is that FAR’s training program is free, and therefore affordable for physicians from the regions. Another important difference was the serious and responsible approach of the physician-leader/lecturer.”
Sergey recalled an interesting story from his CME experience:
During his time in the program, a serious accident had taken place in Dilijan, requiring the attention of an experienced physician from the capital. Emil Vardapetyan, a trainer from the CME program who was also a physician in Yerevan, was called to the task. Sergey was the mentee of Dr. Vardapetyan at the time, and together they visited Dilijan. Sergey was honored to be part of this emergency service, and he regards his acquaintance with other physicians from various Armenian regions as one of the most important achievements of CME.