SUNDAY 5TH APRIL, 2015 – UWI TODAY
11
MEDICAL SCIENCES FACULTY
JH: Professor Ramsewak, what was your journey to
the Faculty of Medical Sciences?
SR:
It’s Samuel, but most of my colleagues call me Sam. I
started at Mt Hope Maternity in 1984 after I became a
specialist and came back to Trinidad (from the UK).
I left Trinidad again in 1989 and when I came back, I
began working at Mt Hope once more. In 1991 I joined
the faculty. I have always shown an interest in research
so I was appointed as a senior lecturer. Then I did my
further thesis andwas appointed to the Chair, Professor,
in 2001.The Chair was called Professor of Reproductive
Medicine because you have to have a name of your
Chair. Essentially what I did was work at Mt Hope as
the Professor, and continued withmy research. Around
2000, I became the Head of Gynaecology, and then I
became Head of the Department of Surgical Sciences.
I sat two terms as Head of Department, became the
Deputy and then Dean
JH: So that’s over two decades of academic activity.
SR:
Yes, and administration. So you see basically I went
through the various platforms. I became Dean in 2007.
JH: Whathas itbeenlike?Whathaveyouexperienced?
SR:
It’s a privilege. You have a situation where you have so
many well-educated and professional academic persons
with good research agendas, people who are experts in
their field and I was able to be leader of that group. It’s
something that I cherish and respect. There were so
many students who depend on the Dean’s Office and
the Dean as an individual. Students would often appeal
to the Dean, not as office but person. I’ll meet them in
the corridor, or on the quadrangle and they would come
to me to tell me about their particular issues. What I
wanted to do, which I think I managed to do, was to be
very accessible. It’s a very important attribute, I think,
that allows one to actually feel the pulse of the people
around you.
JH: Would you say you have a personal goal for the
faculty?
SR:
When I became Dean, I wrote out a mission. Number
one on it was that I would be seen as leader who was
fair. Fairness is a critical element in leadership because
you are dealing with human relations and career
development. We are in a system where you can feel
that you are being wronged by the person in authority.
I wanted to ensure that no one felt that they were being
kept back out of a personal agenda or something else.
We have to face the fact that the university community
is amicrocosmof the community of the island. Because
of our diversity of individuals and cultures, one could
easily be caught up in the discrimination tagline. And
that was what I did not want to be part of. I feel I have
achieved that. I felt that unless I got the support and
the trust of the people around me, then I was a failing
leader.
We have applications far in excess of spaces in the
faculty. We get over 1,100 applications for Medicine;
we have approximately 150 to maximum 180 spaces. If
we put the strict criteria on who is eligible according to
our prospectus we come down to about 450. So there
is still an excess of 200. It’s a challenging process and
we get all kinds of reasons why somebody should get
in, and someone else not. It happens no other way but
by pure meritocracy.
The other important goal I set myself was developing
graduate studies within the faculty. We have a very good
product but we haven’t had a major impact in terms
of people becoming specialists. For example, when I
became Dean, we had about 50 graduate students a
year. Now, it’s close to 400. So it has really developed.
The other quality issue is professionalism and ethics.
We have embarked upon a course that is called
Professionalism and Ethics. This is the first such course
inThe UWI. It takes students fromYear 1, 2, 3 and they
have to pass.
The other thing we did is become more relevant in our
research agenda. A number of my faculty have been
successful in the RDI funding from the Government,
receiving about $1 million from the Research and
Development Impact Fund. We have a (research grant)
committee which is chaired by the Campus Principal,
and in that committee the key principle we apply in
selecting research is relevance to the community.
What I did two years ago was look back at that mission
statement to see what I have accomplished compared
to my projection. And I felt comfortable. I’m not the
person to judge, but I use it as my benchmark.
In Good Health
Outgoing Dean discusses Medical Sciences on its 25th anniversary
B y J o e l H e n r y
It’s an eventful time for
Professor Samuel Ramsewak
, Dean of the Faculty of Medical Sciences. In a few days the faculty will kick off a week of activities to celebrate its 25th anniversary. Faced
with a mountain of tasks related to the event (dubbed FMS@25), the Dean decided to be interviewed at my office rather than his own. It was an extraordinarily mission-focused, no-frills
approach from such an accomplished man, and a testament to one who clearly places the responsibilities of leadership above its prestige. It’s no wonder he has served two fruitful terms, steering
the faculty through a period of growth. 2015 however is Professor Ramsewak’s final year as Dean.
UWI Today
spoke with the professor on his tenure and the Faculty of Medical Sciences at 25.
JH: Why is this 25th anniversary particularly
significant to you?
SR:
When one thinks about what 25 years of teaching and
research would have done, and how it would have
impacted on people’s lives, not just students who
became doctors, doctors who became specialists,
but the patients, the community, I felt that it was
important. I want this to be a celebration for everybody,
particularly those who were there from the beginning.
It is important to reiterate the contribution of all these
people who have kept this faculty going, from the
technical staff to the administrative staff. I also feel that
the students who came in the early years, what they had
there was a level of trust and faith, because prior to the
opening, we had never taught the first three years of the
course. That pioneering class, and that pioneering set
of administrative and support staff, we are very grateful
to them.
JH: What are some of the activities you have
planned?
SR:
We thought we would do a week of observances. We
will kick it off with a Health Fair which is really meant
to be a giving back to the society. People can access
screening, check-ups and certain tests. What is different
about this is that we will be doing it for your physical
health, your dental health, for your pharmaceutical
needs, for your pets and finally, for your eyes. I don’t
think such a holistic approach to health has been done
in Trinidad, and perhaps the Caribbean.
Then we will have a day for a number of activities
for posterity. We will be installing a time capsule on
the compound of the Medical Sciences Complex,
formally hoisting a flag, doing a mural and having a
Students’ Day. We are producing a special edition of
our newsletter, FMS Highlights. To culminate it all, we
are having a cocktail and recognition ceremony at the
Principal’s Office at which we will be recognising the
faculty’s pioneers. The Vice-Chancellor will be there
and other senior university personnel. (FMS@25 took
place from March 15 to 23).
JH: Is there anything you would like to add,
particularly as this is your final year as Dean?
SR:
It was demanding but it was a refreshing difference
for me. I have no regrets. I felt I was able to be part of
the machinery of the university. I am grateful to the
university, and to my colleagues and students. I leave
with very fondmemories. At this level, your interaction
is not just here, but regional and international as well.
I have made some really good friends, at the level of
administration. It helped me really understand the
Caribbean perspective.
JH: What’s the next step?
SR:
I really want to contribute specifically to graduate
training. If I am given the opportunity that would be
my niche because we have a lot of people who are in
the programme and we have a shortage of staff. I could
dedicate some time to that. “The first thing I’d probably
do, though, is take a break (laughter).”
