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DEPARTMENT OF BASIC MEDICAL SCIENCES
Faculty of Science and Technology to study the effects of strontium on the urinary excretion of calcium in rats. The Department continues to develop international collaborations. Most of them are featured in the report itself. The Department continues to be at the forefront of the cannabis research. Several Academic Members of the Department are a part of the Cannabis Licensing Author- ity. Some Academic members of the Department (Carole Lindsay and JP Louboutin) are a part of the Jamaica Psilocybin Industry Technical Committee, the Bureau of Standards, Jamaica, under the leadership of Senator Dr. Saphire Longmore. Staff Matters The Department was again faced with constraints in resources that largely domi- nated decision-making. The issue of securing academic staff in vacant posts remain a concern, and in several cases, particularly in Anatomy, post-retirement contracts have had to be extended. However, vacant posts have been advertised, and short- listing have taken place. There remains a concern about the time it takes for the Human Resource Management Division to finalize advertisements for posts as well as the turnaround time for contract preparations. The Department also faced a series of retirement from the Technical staff due to their salary scale. The Department was also impacted by the reduction in Postgraduate students which resulted in very few demonstrators to assist in the labs. Equipment Several steps have been accomplished in the establishment of a Sterile Laboratory for the Pharmacy programme. This laboratory would allow for the forging some relations with hospitals of the area, for example through the production of anti- cancer drugs. A business plan is currently being discussed. Outreach The Department participates regularly in different outreach initiatives. For example, the Department contributed to several job fairs (i.e., Jamaica College) in order to present the activities taking place in the Department and to attract prospective students. The Department was visited by several schools. Every year, some students from the University of Utretch (Netherlands) visit the Department, more particularly the section of Anatomy and the Faculty of Medical Sciences Museum. The Section of Physical Therapy has significantly contributed to the outreach ini- tiative for several years by making contact with patients during field trips, most of the time associated with the ones organized by the DDS programme.
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