Accreditation Status of St. James of Medicine Bonaire Campus

There has been a lot of talk about the status of the St. James School of Medicine’s survival. Let me make it clear to you that the school is not shutting down, nor is it in the process of shutting down.  Readers of this site questioned what was happening and I had no answer to give them because I didn't know anything.  But now I do know what's happening and I will lay it out.

Right now, the accreditation of the Bonaire campus is extended for another 5 years supposedly. Apparently, the Bonaire campus education quality must be in parallel with Dutch education standards and that's where the problem started.  So, SJSM has to improve the quality of education.

I’m not going to sugarcoat anything, the ground reality is if Bonaire ever lost the Dutch accreditation then Bonaire campus will close and the SJSM accreditation will be dependent on the Anguilla campus. Unfortunately, for the Bonaire students who already registered with the ECFMG for USMLE Step 1, SJSM will mostly likely transfer everything from the Anguilla campus and it will show “transfer” on your transcript. If you didn’t register yet with the ECFMG then you should be good, but don’t take my word for it.

Currently, SJSM have cleared anything and everything that stood in the way of the Bonaire campus's accreditation so you don't need to worry.  The best thing is to call SJSM’s main office and ask them what happened in detail.

Bottom like is, SJSM Bonaire still has IMED accreditation and it will continue to run.

Here is the letter the students received from the main office:
We are pleased to announce our IMED listing issue has been RESOLVED

Over the past months we have been working closely with the Dutch Government regarding the school's accreditation.

We have been advised that these discussions have been successful and ourIMED listing is secure. We are now waiting for the official extension notification documentation which is due shortly.

The extension means SJSM Bonaire will continue to operate as normal with the support of the Dutch government and local Bonaire administration. Our students can therefore focus on their medical studies with certainty.

Sincerely,

Saint James School of Medicine - Bonaire
Administration


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10 comments:

Anonymous said...

I thought the issue was IMED listing, which is governed by ECFMG, and they gave SJSM until October 2013 to get Accredited by the Dutch Government. Now the Dutch gave them a 5 year extension (Supposedly, not confirmed in writing yet) BUT that does NOT mean ECFMG will be like "ok we will wait the 5 years and keep your IMED going". ECFMG can very easily just say nope, we gave you a deadline you did not meet it, too bad so sad.. So in a nutshell the Accredition issue is NOT yet solved, SJSM is just sugar coating this in my opinion pretending all is well..

Anonymous said...

This is incorrect. The IMED listing is dependent on the Dutch Government and the school's charter. ECFMG cannot revoke the listing. It was only in peril because of the October 2013 deadline.

Anonymous said...

you added your own line to this email. "We are now waiting for the official extension notification documentation which is due shortly." is not in the official email they sent out to students. if you add your own terms, you're just as bad of a liar as any Caribbean medical school.

Dr. J said...

3rd Anonymous: I didn't add anything to the email, that's what I got from a friend. The school didn't send me this email because I never questioned them or the their accreditation status. Don't accuse me of something that you don't know of. My friend probably got a different email than some others. It's better for you to check your facts first before accusing.

Anonymous said...

3rd Anonymous, You are an Idiot.. Students in Clinical Rotations got a different version of the email than the students currently in Bonaire. Stop trying to be an arrogant nobody, if you don't know what you are talking about don't speak. And if you want to go ahead and condemn Caribbean Medical Schools, clearly you are undeserving of even being in any of them. Do not come and bolster your blasphemy on forums which are meant to help out students who are actively engaged in developing their careers rather than sitting around trying to convey their arrogance through stupidity.

Anonymous said...

Its just the same line of BS the school has been feeding us since we all found out about the issue back in February. Made several calls to the school regarding these issues over the past few months and was consistently lied to. First I was told that they were well on their way to meeting NVAO requirements by Oct. Then when it became known to the students that they had actually retracted their bid for NVAO they admitted they would not meet the October deadline. Then they back peddled told us they were going to take the Dutch government to court in June. They have been saying for weeks the issue is resolved but there is no proof of of that. Where is the official document from the dutch government saying they have the extension. The head office in Chicago is terrible. Have since switched schools, new school is way better, I feel like I am finally learning what I need to know and the school actually cares about the students they don't just want your money. Loved the island of Bonaire but I could not deal with these ongoing issues and poor teaching for the next few years. Saint James might have been a good school at one point but it is no longer what it once was.

Anonymous said...

The school has already released a statement notifying the student body of the extension given to them by the Dutch Government, moreover you can go into the office and review the documentation in person if you require further proof, but none of that matters to you because you are in a different school now. As far as "caring" for students go, if that was your concern good luck in rotations where every resident and attending will rail you upside down & you will feel so much love and "care" from them. The fact is the original issue started when the document leaked because some idiotic students got their hands on it and decided to investigate it on their own. I understand it is your career, but let the administration do their job, they may be horrible but they have gotten students where they wanted to be successfully and are still continuing to do so. And believe me when I say even students in US study on their own rather than depending on a school to teach them all, because if the "teach me everything" principle were true, you will have a hard time studying for Step 1 & specially Step 2 when it comes down to that. But I wish you luck in your pursuit of quality education at an institute which does not want your money, try telling them you want to transfer out, I'm sure the tables will turn on your rather quickly.

Anonymous said...

It's very likely when you speak to the Chicago office that you were speaking to the receptionist or other people who were uninformed about the issue. They can be disorganized.

Anonymous said...

I have heard that SJSM Bonaire will lose IMED as of Oct 1, 2013. Can you please comment on that?

Anonymous said...

That is almost 99.9% true. There are only a very minimal amount of straws left in the hat and the actual truth will be made known in a day or two!

However hard SJSM tried has clearly not worked in their favor until this very moment.

Through different sources I have heard students will be administratively transferred to Anguilla as of October 1st.

The school is trying to seek an extension so this present semester continues for their students but there is no surety at this time.

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