Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/483475
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 22 MARCH 2015 News 7 MIRIAM DALLI THE opening of Barts Medical School may provide the answer for disgruntled academics at the Uni- versity of Malta who feel they are un- derutilised or who sense "inequality" in lecturer ranks, informed sources have told MaltaToday. The government has announced an agreement with the prestigious Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry to open Barts' first overseas campus on the sister island. The first intake of 60 students at Barts in Gozo is expected in Septem- ber next year. It is forecast that the number of students could go up to 300 over a five-year period, targeting students from North America, the UK, Europe and the Middle East. However, concerns were raised by key players on the impact that the private medical school would have on the University of Malta's own medical school (MMS). The MMS currently employs close to 400 lecturers catering for some 750 students. But while MMS tries to attract all doctors and specialists to teach its students, disgruntlement exists among those who believe that some lecturers have better work con- tracts than others, including in terms of working hours, ranking and ap- pointment. In an interview on TVM's Dissett, hosted by journalist Reno Bugeja, Health Minister Konrad Mizzi tried to play down concerns that Barts Medical School could negatively impact MMS in direct competition. MMS, which enjoys a solid interna- tional reputation, attracts several foreign students who prove to be a valuable source of revenue for the university. "There is a big market for medical education and Barts will be target- ing students from North America, the UK, Europe and the Middle East … there is space for both schools," Mizzi said. University Rector Juanito Camill- eri, who said that the demand for medical education worldwide was "far larger than the supply", corrobo- rated the minister's comments. "We feel the University of Malta has a strong enough brand and repu- tation to continue to attract a steady stream of international students as long as its resources and ability to grow are not constrained or under- mined," the Rector told MaltaToday. Explaining that the setting up of another medical school of repute in Malta was most welcome, he warned that it should not jeopardise or undermine the sustainability and growth of the existing one. "This said, there are several ques- tions on how Barts will operate in Malta and in Gozo. We reserve our judgment until we better understand what is intended," Camilleri said. One issue that concerned Profes- sor Godfrey Laferla, dean at the Fac- ulty of Medicine and Surgery, was in fact the risk that Barts could poach MMS lecturers. Although it held one meeting with Mizzi and health par- liamentary secretary Chris Fearne, the faculty was not involved in the discussions over the opening of the Barts medical school here. The faculty however requested as- surance that none of its lecturers would be poached. "They assured us that this would not happen. We were also assured that Mater Dei will remain accessible only for stu- dents studying at the Malta Medical School," Laferla said. With 750 students at MMS, Mater Dei is at saturation and can hardly take any more students. According to the faculty dean, any further ad- ditions would seriously compromise the quality of teaching and patient availability and comfort. It is envisaged that students at the private medical school will receive their training at Gozo and St Luke's Hospital, which will be managed by a private company following the issu- ing of a request for proposals. According to Mizzi, Barts have already carried out "market tests" which show that there are a number of specialists interested in teach- ing at the private school. "Based on discussions with Barts and market testing, we believe there are enough specialists in the market – currently not teaching – who are interested in joining," the minister said. On its part, the Malta Medical Stu- dents' Association says it has been reassured by Parliamentary Secre- tary for Health, Chris Fearne that the opening of the new Bart's Medi- cal School in Gozo will not affect the quality of their tuition. MMSA representatives raised a number of concerns that the new medical school may affect teaching quality. Fearne reassured the medical students that the new medical school will make only "the absolute mini- mal" use of the facilities in Mater Dei Hospital and this use will be restrict- ed to certain sub-specialities and will be scheduled in such a way so as not to impair teaching quality. Teaching staff for the new medical school will include foreign teachers from Queen Mary University and is expected to open in September 2016, during which time the pre-clinical section of the course will commence. In the first two years, students will only be making use of lecturing facil- ities and will not make use of Mater Dei Hospital if the construction tar- gets are not adhered to. This allows more time for the building of the new hospital and its promotion as a destination for medi- cal tourism until September 2018 when the students begin their clini- cal rotations. Both Laferla and Camilleri con- firmed that the university engaged the vast majority of specialists across all disciplines. "The majority of specialists already have a teaching appointment at the University of Malta. What they do in their private time is their own deci- sion, as long as it does not conflict with their commitments at the uni- versity. As long as their contractual duties are honoured, we cannot im- pose on anyone what to do," Laferla said, adding that his role was to take care of the Medical School and to en- sure that the teaching levels, services offered and resources available re- main of the highest standards. The president of the Medical Asso- ciation of Malta, Martin Balzan, also expressed confidence in the MMS's ability to compete with other estab- lished schools. Arguing that the Malta Medical School's reputation might be one of the reasons why Barts wanted to set up shop on the Maltese Islands, Bal- zan however said Mater Dei services should remain ring-fenced. "We are proud of our university but we want our hospital facilities to be ring-fenced," Balzan said. He went on to add that there was excess ca- pacity at the MMS, with a number of lecturers teaching students for just five months out of an 11-month aca- demic year, or two hours a week. Balzan added that competition was healthy and there shouldn't be any problem if any lecturers want to join Barts Medical School as well, as long as the MMS's standards are not com- promised. Asked whether the university would be interested in setting up joint courses with Barts, the Rector said the university, some months ago had approached Barts and The Lon- don School of Medicine and Den- tistry to collaborate in the setting up of a joint graduate-entry medical programme. "But it seems the die had already been cast. Perhaps this would have been a less complicated and more sustainable way forward all round. Time will tell." Fears that Barts could poach teaching staff PROJECTS MALTA LTD IS WHOLLY OWNED BY THE GOVERNMENT OF MALTA AND WAS SETUP TO PROMOTE AND COORDINATE NEW PUBLIC PRIVATE INITIATIVES AND PROJECTS IN MALTA. Further details are available in the Government Gazette dated Friday 20 th March 2015 and the Ministry for Tourism website: http://www.tourism.gov.mt/en/Departments-Sections-Units/Pages/ Departments-Sections-Units%20Sub%20Pages/TendersRFQ-and-RFI.aspx Alternatively documents, can be personally picked from: The Ministry for Tourism, 233, Republic Street, Valletta. Submissions will be received at Projects Malta Ltd, The Clock Tower, Level 1, Tign� Point, Sliema until the 10 th April 2015 by 10:00 CET. Late entries will NOT be accepted. Call for Tenders Build, own and operate a Modular Floating System in St. Thomas Bay, Marsascala REF: PML /03/2015 Students at the private medical school will receive their training in Gozo and at St Luke's Hospital Dean of Barts Medical School Prof. Anthony Warrens (right) and Malta Enterprise Chairman Mario Vella