After lying dormant for roughly 15 years, the Barbados branch of the University of the West Indies Medical Alumni Association (UWIMAA) has formally restarted operations, launching a multi-pronged partnership with the UWI Cave Hill Faculty of Medical Sciences to uplift current students and strengthen ties between graduates and the institution.
Under the formal agreement reached between the revived alumni chapter and the medical faculty, two key initiatives are already moving forward: financial support for renovations to student spaces at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, and a formal mentorship program for clinical students.
Dean Dr. Damian Cohall of the Faculty of Medical Sciences explained the terms of the partnership in an interview with Barbados TODAY, noting that the collaborative arrangement builds on longstanding mutual goodwill. “As partners, I negotiated with Dr Peter Adams, who is the president of the local chapter, that our accommodation and our hospitality could be reciprocated with them providing some assistance to our students,” Cohall said.
The first concrete contribution from the chapter is funding to upgrade the student lounge that serves medical students based at Queen Elizabeth Hospital. Beyond infrastructure improvements, chapter members have also volunteered their professional time to serve as mentors for clinical-phase students, who gain hands-on experience working with patients during this stage of their training. Cohall emphasized that the faculty is deeply grateful for the alumni group’s renewed commitment. “We are certainly appreciative of their efforts,” he added.
For Professor Peter Adams, a retired former dean of the medical faculty who now leads the revived Barbados chapter, growing the organization’s membership is the top immediate priority. A larger, more engaged network of graduates will expand the chapter’s capacity to support the school and its students over the long term, Adams explained.
“I would like to increase our membership and to make sure that our reunion events and meet and mingle are well sustained,” Adams said. “Once we achieve that – because, remember, we are resuscitating – once we can keep this going, then we will be able to interact with the medical school – which we are doing – on a consistent basis, so we might be able to help refurbish some of the things they need, do mentoring and working.”
A core part of the chapter’s mission is sustaining an active link between practicing medical graduates, the medical school, and current trainees, Adams noted. Beyond facility upgrades and mentorship, this connected network can also strengthen the institution’s reputation, as successful graduates showcase the quality of training they received at UWI.
“We will keep a link between the graduates, the medical school and medical students to strengthen those bonds,” Adams said. “The alumni can help the medical school by providing career guidance for students and mentorship for students, which is always important. So, we are working on those two things. We can enhance the reputation of the medical school, just through a network of successful graduates.”
Adams added that the partnership also opens the door for longer-term impact: the alumni network could help raise the profile of the medical school among local primary and secondary students, highlighting career pathways in medicine that many young people may not otherwise consider. Graduates can also share on-the-ground professional perspectives to help shape the medical school’s programs and practices, ensuring training stays aligned with real-world needs.
Alongside Adams, the revived chapter’s newly installed executive leadership team includes Professor Margaret Anne St. John as vice-president, Dr. Sonita Alexander as secretary, Dr. Donna Markle as assistant secretary, Dr. Tania Whitby-Best as treasurer, and Drs. Lynn-Marie Lovell and Joanne Paul-Charles as floor members. The group will now focus on growing membership, launching the agreed-upon student support initiatives, and laying the groundwork for sustained long-term engagement with the Cave Hill campus.