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Photo caption: (L-R) Dean Ray Lash of the Medical University of the Americas on Nevis breaks ground with Hon Jean Harris Minister of Health in Nevis for the construction of a new wing of the University at Porworks. |
CHARLESTOWN NEVIS (July 07, 2006) -- Minister of Health in the Nevis Island Administration (NIA) Hon Jean Harris, has lauded the contribution of the students of the Medical University of the Americas (MUA) to Nevis, citing that they have been an asset to the health services offered in various communities on the island.
Mrs Harris made the comment on Thursday July 06, 2006, while she delivered the feature address at the ground breaking ceremony for the construction of a new wing of the offshore University at Potworks in the St James Parish.
"They [students] have contributed to the battle of non-communicable diseases, the leading cause of hospitalisation, disability and mortality in Nevis. With the shortage of health care personnel, the medical students are an asset to community health as they team up with the community health nurses to address health care issues in our communities," he said.
The partnership between the MUA and the Nevis Island Administration began in 1995 and Mrs Harris said following three years of planning, hard work and many frustrations an agreement was signed between the government of St Kitts and Nevis and the MUA which signalled an official partnership. In 2000 the medical school opened its doors with 35 students and grew to a roll of 335 students in 2006.
According to Mrs Harris, the MUA is among the top three medical schools in the Caribbean with accreditation and recognition from the World Health Organisation and the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG), an organisation based in the United States which promotes excellence in international medical education.
She said it was her fervent belief that because the NIA granted the MUA exclusivity a few years ago, it became one of the factors that contributed most significantly to its many achievements, though it was seen by critics as a give away. "I am extremely happy that we are now seeing and enjoying the fruits of that arrangement," she said.
Dean of the MUA Doctor Ray Lash gave an overview of the building project and explained that the new building
would measure 30,000 square feet and would house four state of the art classrooms each designed to hold between 100-125 students and computerised testing facilities which would facilitate 125-150 computers. The computer facility would allow students to take their examinations online. The new wing would also provide facilities for conferencing, faculty staff offices, guest faculty apartments and student support areas.
Mr Lash said through the vision of the Nevis Island Administration and the administration of the Medical University of the Americas, "we [MUA administration] had the foresight and the financial wherewithal to begin construction of our new building which had been quite a few years in the making."
He said the MUA had enjoyed an excellent relationship with the NIA and looked forward to continued expansion of the school to provide placement for students that have been turned away for lack of space.
However, Mr Lash noted that students who had come through the MUA in Nevis had gone on to graduate and are in their advance training in the United States, some of whom are doing residencies in everything including plastic surgery, neurology, paediatrics, psychiatry, internal medicine. "They are doing well and they are passing their boards, they are getting their licences and our hopes is more and more of them, will come back to join us even though its faculty or as physicians in the island," he said.
~~Adz:Left~~Meantime, Hon Livingston Herbert Junior Minister of Education in Nevis, during brief remarks underscored the importance of the MUA noting that all could attest to the socio-economic impact the institution has had and would continue to have on Nevis.
"If we were to take the time out and calculate the impact that will be created for the provision of accommodation of 200 additional students, we will find that in excess of $3,000,000. will be generated annually by way of rental. However, accommodation will have to be constructed and this will engender a boom in the construction industry," he said adding that there would also be a greater demand for ancillary services.
Mr Herbert said the expansion of the University would also provide for the increasing viability of existing businesses throughout Nevis and "the rippling effects of the expansion are comparable only to the current economic impact that has already created by the University."
He also called on persons to size the moment and to position themselves for all the cascading effects generated by the expansion of the MUA.
Mr Herbert said the NIA looked forward to a continued mutually beneficial partnership with the MUA and had committed itself [NIA] to creating an environment which would facilitate the longevity of the institution.
