UG MBBS curriculum to be reviewed with CDC Grant

Oct 24, 2011 News

As the University of Guyana’s Faculty of Health Sciences continues to increase its offerings, including programmes that could cater to a wider cross section of health professionals, plans are apace to expand even further.
This is according to the Health Sciences Dean, Dr. Emanuel Cummings, who revealed that the Faculty was just recently bestowed with a US$3.2M Grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The move was made possible through the Faculty’s collaboration with the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), the Ministry of Health and the University of Maryland.
This grant, according to Dr. Cummings, will help to, among other things, review the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) curriculum, and introduce a Resident Programme in Internal Medicine with an emphasis on infectious diseases.
It is anticipated that this programme will be introduced as soon as next September, according to Dr. Cummings.
“We are also working on Residents’ Programmes in Obstetrics and Gynecology (ObGyn), Family Medicine and Mental Health in addition to a Bachelor in Public Health and a Masters in Nursing,” the Dean disclosed.
It was just last year that the Registrar of the University, Mr. Vincent Alexander had revealed that the University was poised to introduce three new medical programmes for the 2010/2011 academic year.
These were the Degree in Pharmacy as well as Bachelor of Science Degree in Optometry and Rehabilitation Sciences.
He said that despite the fiscal challenges being faced by the institution, the need to keep up with the changing demands of industry required adaptation by the University. The Degree in Pharmacy had become essential in light of the fact that the Caribbean Association of Pharmacists issued a call throughout the Region to up the minimum qualifications required to dispense pharmaceuticals. Previously, the industry allowed students with an Associate’s Degree in Pharmacy to work as Pharmacists.
However, the need for stricter standards in the dispensation of drugs dictated the need for more in-depth training. This requirement is being fueled by the rise in drug dependence and abuse through controlled substances as well as illicit narcotics.
The Optometry Programme on the other hand has proven to be one of the more sought after programmes in the Faculty of Health Sciences despite some teething problems, according to Dr. Cummings. According to him, both the Bachelor of Science and the Associate Degree in Optometry programmes have seen overwhelming responses. The University began offering the programmes last year September and the Dean revealed that “we have gotten 30 students in both areas. As a matter of fact, we had to actually reject some students.”

ean of the Faculty of Health Sciences, Dr. Emanuel Cummings

And it was not only local students who were attracted to the Optometry programme, Dr. Cummings said, adding that students from Saint Lucia, Jamaica and Haiti had made up the inaugural batch.
Students from the latter mentioned territory are able to access the programme through a scholarship programme designed specifically for them.
However, the only notable setback of the programme, Dr. Cummings revealed, was that of the students’ fees, which had proven to be a problem. He attributed this to the fact that there was a conflict in terms of the fee which the University had programmed for, and the fee which was approved by the government. According to him, due to the development of the fee predicament, one student had been affected.
And it was in recognition of the fact that it attracted no more than 10 students last year, the University of Guyana had streamlined plans to review its Rehabilitation Sciences Degree Programme.
The Programme was introduced last year too but did not realise the anticipated response. According to Dr. Cummings, from all indications, the offering of the programme was plagued with a number of challenges ranging from the unavailability of Government loans, the way it was promoted, to the fact that several persons were unable to secure time to attend lecture sessions.
The latter problem, he said, was rooted in the fact that the programme was mainly intended to attract persons already working in the area of Rehabilitation Services within the health sector.
“Only about 10 persons applied. Many potential students had issues with getting time off from their jobs. The way it was promoted too needs to be seriously reviewed,” Dr. Cummings noted.
Additionally, he revealed that he has since indicated to the University that the name of the programme should be advertised as Physiotherapy rather than Rehabilitation Sciences. He explained though that Rehabilitation Sciences encompasses three areas – physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy.
According to him, Physiotherapy is in fact the aspect of Rehabilitation Sciences that should be placed in the forefront. “I think that the public would be better able to relate to Physiotherapy rather than Rehab Sciences. I have already indicated this to the University because I think we will have to do some career guidance as it relates to this programme.”
And even as measures are in place to perfect the existing programmes, the Faculty, in collaboration with the Georgetown Public Hospital Institute of Health Science Education and the Humber River Regional Hospital in Toronto, recently introduced a Masters Degree in Paediatrics, which is aimed at helping to improve paediatric care at the public institution.