The University of Medicine and Health Sciences is pleased to announce that on January 9, 2008, the St. Kitts and Nevis Accreditation Board provided UMHS with a Certificate of Programme and Institution Accreditation. This, plus the charter that was issued last year, allows UMHS to provide accredited classes in the medical curriculum.

Pretty good free advertisement.

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...."Beyond jealosy and betrayal; beyond hate and desire; beyond pain and death; lies the ultimate revelation; the final choice; the end; because the fate of destruction is also the joy of rebirth" Neon Genesis Evangelion

I would like to know what the status on the other accreditations are? What is the status with the ECFMG, WHO and IMED?

An application could not go to WHO/FAIMER until the Federation accredited the school. Now that that has happened, UMHS and the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis have completed the documentation needed to include UMHS on the WHO/IMED listing. It is our understanding that the Federation has forwarded this documentation to WHO.

This process, which results in a listing on IMED, is not truly an accreditation. It is simply a listing in FAIMER's directory of accredited international medical schools. The actual accreditation of UMHS was done by the Accreditation Board of St. Kitts and Nevis.

What about the ECFMG? I know that takes a while, but will it be in place before the start of school?

Yes, all of the registrations will be in place by the start of school but we have to take each step in order. As I've mentioned in other posts, the Dean and Provost of UMHS has a very lengthy tenure in medical education and has been through this process before. He has been walking UMHS through it this time and and will continue to do so until the school is well established.

Received this in an email today:

UMHS Admissions Office UPDATE:

TO: All applicants and accepted UMHS medical students

RE: First Progress Report on UMHS’ new medical education program

1. Accreditations:

The University of Medicine and Health Sciences’ academic program, including all planning aspects of medical education program delivery, was compiled in a comprehensive database document submitted to the St. Kitts Ministry of Education on September 30, 2007, shortly after the institution’s Charter was executed by the St. Kitts government. After review of all accreditation materials, as of January 1, 2008, the Ministry of Education certified UMHS’ medical education program and granted institutional accreditation for the entire program, so that physicians graduating from UMHS are able to be licensed in the federation of St. Christopher & Nevis.

Recently, the government of St. Kitts--through its permanent secretary of education, Mr. Osmond Petty—formally notified the Secretary-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) on January 14, 2008, petitioning for recognition and registration of UMHS’ program in the WHO world medical education directory, once instruction actually commences.

UMHS’s immediate goal is to be formally recognized by ECFMG (Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates) and to be IMEDs-listed (realized through ECFMG and FAIMER). Once this is accomplished, our graduates will be eligible to become ECFMG-certified to sit for the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) and become eligible to participate in US residency training.

2. Faculty Hiring:

As of September 2007, William G. Thurman, M.D. assumed the executive deanship of UMHS, after previously serving as both the chief executive and executive dean at Ross University School of Medicine (RUSM) during its first change of ownership. Immediately prior to rejoining forces with Dr. Ross, he had also served as executive dean of American University of the Caribbean (AUC), responsible for many advances in that school’s medical education program on St. Maarten, in the Netherlands Antilles.

His distinguished career in academic medicine has included teaching posts in pediatrics and pediatric oncology at Tulane University and Emory University, the University of Virginia, and concurrent appointments at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Cornell University School of Medicine, and Rockefeller University. He was formerly Dean of the Tulane University School of Medicine, and served for many years as Provost and Vice-President for Health Affairs at the University of Oklahoma. In addition, he has served as Senior National Consultant in Pediatrics to the Surgeon General, U.S. Air Force.

Dr. Thurman is one of a select few preeminent international medical school educators and innovators, who has been instrumental in the design, management and successful implementation of US standards in international medical education. Dr. Thurman has attracted to UMHS some of the most experienced and qualified US medical education professionals available today, in furtherance of our stated mission. We are nearing completion of the hiring of our basic sciences faculty, and we look forward to an excellent student to faculty ratio and individualized student mentoring.

3. Physical Plant Update:

Groundbreaking has taken place, and plans have been finalized for the new, 11,000 sq.ft. Gross Anatomy and Neurosciences/Neuroanatomy Lab, scheduled for completion prior to the commencement of instruction in May 2008.

This complements the $30,000,000 campus already in full operation utilized by IUON nursing educators, and all aspects of the technology are truly cutting edge. Our campus features not just one, but two 12-bed patient simulation labs with fully-working headwalls, making it a virtual hospital environment complete with adult, adolescent and pediatric patient simulators for enhanced clinical training.

4. Curriculum Development:

Attached to this update is our new basic sciences curriculum, incorporating clinical correlations beginning with the first semester of instruction in the basic sciences. Problem based learning is a key feature of this rigorous curriculum and many challenging innovations have been incorporated, making what we sincerely believe will be the model for all to follow. Intensification of some aspects of basic sciences has been achieved with an above-average course load per semester, so as to allow more time for comprehensive interweaving of didactic and clinical approaches, creating an advanced, integrative approach to basic medical sciences study in the 21st century.

5. Affiliation Agreements:

This is perhaps one of the important aspects of the third and fourth year, which of course all begins with the selection of superb training facilities for the fifth semester. We have two geographic locations to date, and expect to be able to offer a variety of locations for our Biological Basis of Clinical Medicine and USMLE Step I review.

We are in negotiations with a score of ACGME-approved teaching facilities throughout the various states, and already can anticipate placing qualified students in excellent teaching hospitals in several locations, as of this writing. Finalized agreements are anticipated during 2008-2009 for engaging in both core and elective clinical experiences in all medical specialties.

In closing, please do come prepared to work and study hard, but also remember that there will be sufficient time to enjoy your classmates and a truly lovely, and ecologically diverse island.

Thank you for joining us on this exciting journey, and our faculty and staff genuinely look forward to working with you in UMHS’ inaugural semester this coming May.

got the same email too. but do you know what is the time table on IMED cause i got accepted to CMU then the end up not being IMED so I am glad I didn't pay any thing to them. just scared as all that it. Don't want to get their and i wasted mony 4 a school that is closing.

The documents required for registration with IMED were delivered to Government ministry yesterday. They will submit them on behalf of the University. At this time, neither the ministry nor the University see any reason that there should be a problem getting registered.

Hi everyone,
I e-mailed IMED regarding IMED listing for UMHS.

below is a copy of the e-mail amd the response:

From: name withheld
Sent: Sunday, June 15, 2008 8:05 PM
To: IMED
Subject: IMED LISTING FOR UMHS

To whom it may concern,
I am a prospective student of University of Medicine and Health sciences, St. kitts. I am aware that a school does not get IMED listed until it is confirmed that the school has officially started teaching students. I am also aware that the school was officially opened in may 2008. However, there is no IMED listing on the school as of today, June 15th, 2008. I would like to know when the school would get listed. It would help all prospective students like me make their decisions regarding going to the school. Your information would be greatly appreaciated. Thanking you in advance.