Oceania University of Medicine

Last updated
Oceania University of Medicine
Oceania University of Medicine Logo.png
TypePublic-private
Established2002 (2002)
Chairman Taffy Gould
Vice-Chancellor Satupaitea (Satu) Viali, BHB, MBChB (Auck), MPH (UNSW), FRACP, FCSANZ, FESC, FACC
Academic staff
53
Students340
Location
Apia
,
Samoa
Website www.oum.edu.ws

Oceania University of Medicine (OUM) is an Independent Samoa-based medical school established in 2002 and operated through a public-private partnership between the Government of Samoa and e-Medical Education, LLC, a Florida-based medical education management company. Its hybrid curriculum of distance-learning preclinicals and face-to-face clinical rotations  enrolls 333 students, as of March 2024, and 215 graduates are currently in residency/internship training or practicing medicine in numerous global locations, primarily Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Samoa, and the US.

Contents

History

The medical school was founded by philanthropist and e-Medical Education's Chairman, Taffy Gould, and included a handful of Samoan and Australian doctors to fill a void: a shortage of physicians in Samoa and the South Pacific.

OUM operates under a charter executed by the Government of Independent Samoa (formerly Western Samoa) and represented by the Prime Minister, as an autonomous statutory corporation. Its authority derives from the Oceania University of Medicine Act, passed by the Legislative Assembly of Samoa in January 2002 [1] and e-Medical Education operates OUM as part of the agreement. Housed on the grounds of the National Hospital Complex in Apia, Samoa, the university formally opened in March 2002 with seven students. [2]

Less than a month after opening, its acting Dean, Professor Don Wilbur, returned to the United States, leaving only a single academic staff member in Samoa. [3] In October 2002 five of the university's students complained that they were not getting the education they had paid for. [4] In 2005 the university was criticised by an Australian Labor MP as offering "worthless" degrees. [5]

In March 2011 Vice-Chancellor Professor Surindar Cheema and most of the staff were terminated by the American operator, without the approval of the university council. [6] In September 2012 the Samoan Government began discussions on a takeover of the university and merging it with the National University of Samoa. [7]

In 2019 the university moved into new teaching facilities at the Tupua Tamasese Motootua Hospital. [8]

Due to Samoa's remote location, a distance-learning curriculum evolved with local physician mentors providing clinical training at Apia's Tupua Tamasese Meaole Hospital (TTM), which remains OUM's primary teaching facility. This online curriculum delivery during preclinicals allowed students to study from their home communities and, for many, to continue working during the first two years of the program. That ability to keep working during preclinical studies remains a primary consideration for prospective students. As the program grew, aspiring physicians in other global locations that also experienced physician shortages — as well as those with geographic and personal challenges to attending a traditional medical school — expressed interest in the medical school's program.

Mission

Oceania University of Medicine is a mission-driven institution and its mission guides its daily activities. The mission has changed little since 2002, although the methods to achieve the mission's goals have matured with each passing year:

"The mission of Oceania University of Medicine (OUM) is to help qualified individuals to overcome distance, personal, and professional barriers to become highly trained medical practitioners, committed to life-long learning with the requisite knowledge, skills, and attitudes to care for patients; to prevent, treat, and cure disease; and to create and apply new knowledge to improve the health of underserved communities in Oceania and beyond."

Accreditation

As the university grew, following a multi-year process and submission of over 1000 documents, the medical school sought accreditation from the Philippine Accrediting Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities. [9] Accreditation was granted in 2010, [10] becoming the first internationally accredited medical school in the South Pacific. In 2015, OUM underwent PAASCU’s rigorous re-accreditation, was awarded level-two status, and its accreditation was extended through April 2025. In 2022-2023, OUM apparently sought advice from the Samoan Qualifications Authority (SQA) regarding accreditation by SQA. The advice provided by SQA has yet to be published.

Governance

The university is governed by the OUM Council, a Vice Chancellor, Chief Operating Officer, and an Executive Committee made up of three regional Deans, additional senior faculty, and administrative directors.

The following people have held the role of Vice Chancellor, including:

Admission

OUM offers one degree, the Doctor of Medicine (MD). The program admits two new cohorts annually, in January and July.

OUM's is a graduate-entry program, meaning all applicants must have a bachelor’s degree or higher from an accredited tertiary institution with a GPA of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale, 5.5 on a 7.0 scale, or its equivalent. Neither the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) nor the Graduate Australian Medical School Admissions Test (GAMSAT) is  an admissions requirement at OUM.

OUM currently accepts students from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Samoa, and the United States, where the University has well-established relationships with teaching hospitals and clinics and where it is most knowledgeable of the licensing requirements for international medical graduates (IMGs).

Curriculum

The OUM curriculum is divided into preclinical, transition, and clinical phases. The pre-clinical phase, typically the first 2 - 2.5 years, is delivered via live, instructor-led virtual classrooms and is offered in one of two pathways, the Standard Pathway, [17] which takes 102 weeks to complete, and the USMLE Pathway of 126 weeks for students intending to practice in the United States. [18]

Before being approved to begin the clinical curriculum, students must pass OUM's Final Pre-Clinical Exam (PCE), complete their Clinical Skills Course, and have the prospectus approved for their required research project. In lieu of the Final PCE, students intending to practice in the United States must pass the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) Step 1 before they may begin the clinical curriculum, and must pass USMLE Step 2 as a graduation requirement.

OUM's clinical curriculum encompasses 72 weeks of hands-on clinical rotations. As with all traditional medical schools, clinical rotations occur on-site at select teaching hospitals and clinics at a number of global locations, primarily in Australia and the US. Both pathways include a required four-week clinical rotation in Samoa at TTM Hospital.

Faculty

OUM's faculty reflects the diversity of its student body. Largely from Australia and the United States, faculty members are typically "hire-for-service" academics who work collaboratively to deliver a common internationally applicable medical curriculum based on their combined medical education standards. In addition, faculty teach and advise students from global locations ranging from New Zealand and Samoa to Canada, India, Russia, the Caribbean, and the Philippines. There is considerable focus on understanding and sharing the licensing standards and requirements for the countries where graduates intend to practice.

All faculty have earned MBBS, MD, PhD, and other terminal degrees in their fields. Faculty members serve as Lecturers, Advisors, Research Advisors, Course Specialists, Clinical Coordinators, and members of University Leadership.

Student demographics

OUM's students come from 55 different countries, living primarily in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Samoa, and the United States. As of the January 2024 intake, the student body is 59 percent female, 41 percent male, and the average age is 38.5 years, ranging from 22 to 69 years. Nurses, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants are the most common professions stated upon enrollment, [19] followed closely by paramedics and pharmacists. In addition, 42 percent of OUM's incoming students hold Master's degrees and 8 percent hold Doctorates. [19]

Related Research Articles

A medical school is a tertiary educational institution, professional school, or forms a part of such an institution, that teaches medicine, and awards a professional degree for physicians. Such medical degrees include the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery, Master of Medicine, Doctor of Medicine (MD), or Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO). Many medical schools offer additional degrees, such as a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), master's degree (MSc) or other post-secondary education.

A Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery is a medical degree granted by medical schools or universities in countries that adhere to the United Kingdom's higher education tradition. Despite the historical distinction in nomenclature, these degrees are typically combined and conferred together. This degree is usually awarded as an undergraduate degree, but it can also be awarded at graduate-level medical institutions. The typical duration for completion is five to six years.

According to the US Department of Education, the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates is "the authorized credential evaluation and guidance agency for non-U.S. physicians and graduates of non-U.S. medical schools who seek to practice in the United States or apply for a U.S. medical residency program. It provides comprehensive information and resources on licensure, the U.S. Medical Licensure Examination (USMLE), residencies, and recognition."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medical education</span> Education related to the practice of being a medical practitioner

Medical education is education related to the practice of being a medical practitioner, including the initial training to become a physician and additional training thereafter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medical University of the Americas – Nevis</span>

Medical University of the Americas (MUA) is a private for-profit offshore medical school in Charlestown, Nevis. It is owned by R3 Education, Inc. which also owns St. Matthew's University and Saba University School of Medicine MUA confers upon its graduates the Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American University of Antigua</span> Medical school located in Antigua and Barbuda

American University of Antigua (AUA) is a private, international medical school located in Antigua and Barbuda.

An international medical graduate (IMG), earlier known as a foreign medical graduate (FMG), is a physician who has graduated from a medical school outside of the country where he or she intends to practice. The term non-local medical graduate may be similarly used in countries with distinct licensing regions within them. Generally, the medical school of graduation is one listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools (WDOM) as accredited by the Foundation for Advancement of International Medical Education and Research or the World Health Organization.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saba University School of Medicine</span>

Saba University School of Medicine is a private for-profit offshore medical school located on Saba, a special municipality of the Netherlands in the Caribbean. Saba University confers upon its graduates the Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree. It is owned by R3 Education, Inc. Devens, Massachusetts which also owns St. Matthew's University and the Medical University of the Americas

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UNC School of Medicine</span> Medical school of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

The University of North Carolina School of Medicine is a professional school within the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. It offers a Doctor of Medicine degree along with combined Doctor of Medicine / Doctor of Philosophy or Doctor of Medicine / Master of Public Health degrees.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caribbean Medical University</span> Medical School

Caribbean Medical University (CMU) is an independent, for-profit, U.S. curriculum-based medical school. It is located on the island of Curaçao in the southern Caribbean Sea, off the Venezuelan coast. The main campus is located in the Piscadera Bay area of Willemstad. After a total of four years of training, students are awarded the degree of Doctor of Medicine (M.D.).

Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine is a medical degree conferred by the 38 osteopathic medical schools in the United States. DO and Doctor of Medicine (MD) degrees are equivalent: a DO graduate may become licensed as a physician or surgeon and thus have full medical and surgical practicing rights in all 50 US states. As of 2021, there were 168,701 osteopathic physicians and medical students in DO programs across the United States. Osteopathic medicine emerged historically from osteopathy, but has become a distinct profession.

The American University of Integrative Sciences (AUIS), is a private for-profit offshore medical school with a single campus located in Barbados. Founded in 1999, it was formerly known as the University of Sint Eustatius School of Medicine (USESOM). For a period, the school was based in Sint Maarten, where it was taken over by IEMR LLC, a US-based company. Since October 2017, AUIS has operated in Barbados, and it is currently a candidate for accreditation by the Caribbean Accreditation Authority for Education in Medicine and other Health Professions (CAAM-HP). As of January 2024, the university is facing closure due to financial insolvency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul L. Foster School of Medicine</span> Medical school in El Paso, Texas

The Paul L. Foster School of Medicine is a medical school in El Paso, Texas at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso. The Paul L. Foster School of Medicine is the 9th medical school in the state of Texas, and the medical school is the first one to open in almost four decades. As a result of the numerous financial donations, as well as state funds, The Paul L. Foster School of Medicine has the ability to expand, construct new buildings and hospitals, purchase elaborate training equipment, and hire nationally respected professors. This academic staff is able to train current students through the utilization of state of the art educational and skill enhancing technologies that are considered to be pioneering the medical education process for the next several decades. An example of this ability is demonstrated through the advanced technologies employed in their large Clinical Simulation Center.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Howard Barrows</span> American physician and medical educator

Howard S. Barrows was an American physician and medical educator who was Professor Emeritus at the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine where he had previously served as Associate Dean for Educational Affairs and Chair of Medical Education. Trained as a neurologist, Barrows is best known today for his many innovations in medical education, particularly teaching using Problem-Based Learning (PBL), developed while he was a professor at McMaster University Medical School, assessing clinical skills using simulated patients, and studying clinical reasoning using stimulated recall techniques.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avalon University School of Medicine</span> Medical school in Willemstad, Curacao

Avalon University School of Medicine (AUSOM) is a private medical school located in Willemstad, Curaçao, in the Caribbean. AUSOM confers upon its graduates the Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree. Administrative offices for the university are located in Youngstown, Ohio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mercer University School of Medicine</span> Medical school of Mercer University

Mercer University School of Medicine (MUSM) is the graduate medical school of Mercer University and a component of the Mercer University Health Sciences Center. It was founded in 1982 in Macon, Georgia, United States, and in 2008 opened a second campus in Savannah, Georgia with either site allowing students to complete all four requisite years of medical training. In 2012 MUSM developed a third site in Columbus, Georgia at which students could elect to complete their third and fourth years of training. In 2021, the Columbus transitioned to a full four-year campus.

An offshore medical school is a medical school that caters "primarily to foreign students, wishing to practice medicine in the US and Canada" according to the World Bank, compared to local schools that focus on their home nation. Such schools are chiefly located in the Caribbean basin, but also includes schools in other locations, such as Mexico and Australia, which run programs that target American students.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Perdana University-Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland School of Medicine</span>

The Perdana University – Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland School of Medicine is one of the six schools of the Perdana University located in Damansara Heights, Kuala Lumpur. It was established in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CUNY School of Medicine</span> Medical school of the City University of New York

The City University of New York (CUNY) School of Medicine is a public medical school that was established on June 10, 2015, and began operation in the fall of 2016. The school is in Hamilton Heights on the campus of The City College of New York (CCNY) and partners with Saint Barnabas Health System in the South Bronx, Harlem Hospital Center of NYC Health + Hospitals Corporation, and Staten Island University Hospital of Northwell Health for clinical medical education.

St. George's University School of Medicine is the medical school of St. George's University located in St. George's, Grenada. The school was founded by Charles R. Modica on July 23, 1976. Because of its size, the school placed more doctors into first-year US residency positions than any other medical school in the world between 2011 and 2012. It was rated by The Princeton Review as one of the "Best 168 Medical Schools" in 2012. There are 158 accredited MD-granting institutions in the United States.

References

  1. ↑ "Oceania University of Medicine (Samoa) Act 2002". PACLII. 29 January 2002. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  2. ↑ "SCHOOL OF MEDICINE OPENS IN SAMOA". Pacific Islands Report. 25 March 2002. Archived from the original on 22 August 2021. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  3. ↑ "SAMOA MEDICAL SCHOOL RUNS INTO PROBLEMS". Pacific Islands Report. 23 April 2002. Archived from the original on 22 August 2021. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  4. ↑ "Medical students in Samoa complain they are not getting what they paid for". RNZ. 28 October 2002. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  5. ↑ "Labor slams 'worthless' medical degree". Sydney Morning Herald. 10 February 2005. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  6. ↑ "Future Of Samoa's Oceania University Of Medicine Uncertain". Pacific Islands Report. 9 May 2013. Archived from the original on 9 November 2019. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  7. ↑ "Officials To Discuss Future Of Samoa University Of Medicine". Pacific Islands Report. 19 September 2012. Archived from the original on 17 August 2021. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  8. ↑ Talaia Mika (17 September 2019). "Oceania University of Medicine welcomes addition to its local operations". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  9. ↑ "Samoa-based institution vies for accreditation as international medical school". RNZ. 3 March 2009. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  10. ↑ "SAMOA MEDICAL UNIVERSITY ACCREDITATION RENEWED". Pacific Islands Report. 9 January 2012. Archived from the original on 25 November 2020. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  11. ↑ "Dr. Viali Lameko Named Vice Chancellor at Oceania University of Medicine". Government of Samoa. 26 February 2015. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  12. ↑ "OUM announces succession plans for its next phase of growth". Oceania University of Medicine. February 2021. Archived from the original on 27 October 2021. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  13. ↑ "OUM NAMES PROFESSOR HUGH BARTHOLOMEUSZ VICE CHANCELLOR". Oceania University of Medicine. 3 October 2021. Archived from the original on 14 October 2021. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  14. ↑ "Who We Are - Vice Chancellor Athol Mackay". Oceania University of Medicine. Retrieved 2023-08-23.
  15. ↑ "OUM WELCOMES 2024 WITH NEW SAMOAN LEADERSHIP: Asiata Professor Satu Viali, Vice Chancellor and Dr. George Tuitama, Dean for Samoa, American Samoa, and the Asia Pacific". 5 February 2024.
  16. ↑ "Asiata is OUM's new boss". Samoa Observer. 3 February 2024. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
  17. ↑ "Standard Pathway (Australia, New Zealand, and beyond)". Oceania University of Medicine. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  18. ↑ "USMLE Pathway (North America)". Oceania University of Medicine. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  19. 1 2 "WHO WE ARE". Oceania University of Medicine. Retrieved 31 August 2023.

13°50′47″S171°45′52″W / 13.84639°S 171.76444°W / -13.84639; -171.76444

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.