Private citizen pledges $200M for construction of learning centre at GPHC

-as part of efforts to re-accredit UG’s medical school

Efforts to re-accredit the University of Guyana Medical School (UGMS) have been given a boost by “a good corporate citizen,” who has pledged $200M to assist in the construction of a building to be used for student instruction.

This is according to Minister of Public Health Dr George Norton, who told Stabroek News yesterday that the Ministry has been approached by this citizen with the offer of funding the construction of the instructional space within the compound of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC).

In July, 2015, the UGMS lost the provisional accreditation it had been granted by Caribbean Accreditation Authority for Education in Medicine and other Health Professions (CAAM-HP).

According to its website, CAAM-HP is the legally constituted body, established in 2003 under the aegis of Caricom, empowered to determine and pre- scribe standards and to accredit programmes of medical, dental, veterinary and other health professions education on behalf of the contracting parties in Caricom.

The UGMS was first granted provisional accreditation in 2008 for the period January, 2008 to December, 2009. In 2009, it was accredited with conditions for the period 2008 to 2012. After a site visit in 2013, the institution was afforded provisional accreditation for the period 2013 to 2015, with the condition that issues flagged in the site visit report and in its letter be addressed and reported on in the school’s reports to CAAM-HP, the organisation said on its website.

UGMS was required to submit annual progress reports and prepare for a limited ( focused) survey visit from CAAM-HP as conditions for the retention and possible upgrading of its accredited status.

However, after the uni- versity failed to submit its annual report in 2015, a decision was taken to withdraw the Provisional Accreditation and ask the school to prepare for a full site visit early 2016 if it wishes to regain accreditation.

In its “Standards for the accreditation of Medical Schools in Caricom,” CAAM-HP lists a wide variety of standards in the following areas: the institutional setting; the students; education programmes; the faculty; educational resources; internship and continuing professional education.

Stabroek News understands that while issues in several of these areas affect the accreditation of UGMS, the three main issues revolve around the curriculum, which was outdated, the operationalisation of a Memorandum of Understanding ( MoU) between the Ministry of Public Health, UGMS, and the GPHC, as well the absence of facilities to sup- port the medical programmes at GPHC and UGMS.

The Minister noted that simultaneous efforts are being made to address these three issues.

Stabroek News has learnt that the curriculum, which has not been seriously reviewed since 1994, has recently undergone an overhaul. Reportedly one of the major issues was the lack of time afforded to the medical students for review and research as well as the absence of continuity in the programme courses.

There are also concerns about the quality of teaching being received by the instructors, whom CAAMHP has asked be qualified in education as well as medicine.

Norton explained that the CAAM- PH had also asked for a review of the MoU signed earlier this year between UGMS, GPHC and what was then the Ministry of Health. This review has since been completed and the document is ready to be signed.

In relation to the provision of appropriate facilities to support the pro- gramme, Norton explained that once the new building is completed it will house an updated library, a student common room, and modernised teaching and learning facilities, including appropriate laboratories to afford clinical practice. This is in an effort to meet CAAM- PH’s standards, which state “a medical school must have, or be assured use of, buildings and equipment appropriate to achieve its educational and other goals” as well as “a medical school must have, or be assured use of, appropriate resources for the clinical instruction of its medical students. A hospital

or other clinical facility that serves as a major site for medical student education must have appropriate instructional facilities and information resources.”

“The $200M might not be enough for what is necessary but it is a start which we can show to CAAM-PH that we have made efforts and have clear plans in place to achieve the necessary objective,” Norton said. He added that the faculty and students from University of Guyana Architectural and Engineering programmes have also been brought on board to design the plans for the facility.