MoBay’s IPMC signs pact with African college for postgraduate dental training
Published:Monday | February 3, 2025 | 4:39 PMAdrian Frater/Gleaner Writer
Western Bureau:
The Montego Bay-based International Postgraduate Medical College (IPMC) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the West African College of Surgeons (WACS) to have students from Africa complete their postgraduate training in oral and maxillofacial surgery and implantology here in Jamaica.
The approval was finalised by an accreditation team of top professors from the Faculty of Dentistry at the WACS, which recently visited Jamaica to accredit both the training and training facility at the IPMC. This follows a five-day accreditation exercise in May 2024, which examined IPMC’s suitability for postgraduate training.
The WACS, which came to Jamaica to sign the MoU comprised Professor Sunday Ajike – chairman of the Faculty of Dentistry WACS, Professor Abiodun Fasola, Professor Folake Oredugba, and Dr Mojirade Ajayi. The Jamaican team featured Dr Damion Blake, from the Jamaica Tertiary Education Commission (JTEC) of the Ministry of Education, and the IPMC’s representatives, Professor Everald Barton, the college provost; and Dr Christopher Ogunsalu, the president and chief executive officer of the college.
“This is a landmark achievement in the field of oral and maxillofacial surgery and also implantology for the IMPC and Jamaica,” Ogunsalu told The Gleaner. “For the past seven years we have been training Caribbean dentists in several areas of postgraduate studies with much success. We are looking to replicate this success with the WACS.
“Based on the MoU, the accreditation of the IPMC was not only for its suitability for postgraduate training, but also for the accreditation of the college’s teaching facilities for the training of WACS candidates after they have passed the Part I examination of the WACS; to reciprocate with IPMC fellowships and allow IPMC fellows to apply for the WACS fellowship; and for WACS’ fellows in oral and maxillofacial surgery to apply for our fellowships without examination; and to fully assist WACS to develop a centre in West Africa for the training of oral and maxillofacial implantology.”
POSTGRADUATE STUDIES THIS YEAR
In its training of Caribbean dentists over the past seven years, the IPMC offered postgraduate studies in oral and maxillofacial surgery, oral medicine and oral implantology. The college is expected to begin postgraduate training in oral radiology this academic year alongside the establishment of the undergraduate programme in dentistry.
“The current MoU will allow the IPMC to receive postgraduate students from the WACS who have done exceptionally well in the Part I fellowship examination. This will allow the candidates to complete their training in Jamaica in addition to them being resourceful academics for the teaching of our undergraduate students and enhance research and publication within the IPMC,” said Ogunsalu.
“Our latest state-of-the-art facility for dento-alveolar surgery, implantology, and bone regeneration will surely allow these candidates to complete their postgraduate training in a timely manner,” he added.
The WACS is recognised as one of the foremost postgraduate surgical training colleges in Africa. It has been mandated by the nations of West Africa to train surgeons of the highest quality.
“The WACS has designed a programme for the training of surgeons in West Africa and in pursuance of a commitment to the best possible training for surgeons in West Africa, through collaboration with international and regional groups with similar aims,” said Ogunsalu. “The WACS is interested in getting young fellows and trainees to improve the training they received in West Africa through additional hands-on training outside West Africa and in Jamaica for periods ranging from six months to one year at a time.”
“The IPMC wishes to thank Professor Philip Mshelbwala, the secretary general of the WACS, and Professor Sunday Ajike, the chairman of the Faculty of Dentistry, for all the time taken to ensure that this collaboration is made possible,” added Ogunsalu.