CHCS - Perspectives Winter/Spring 2016

58 • NOVA SOUTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY F ort Myers PA students have had the unique experi- ence of learning about the lives of physician assistant students in Cameroon, Africa, from John Hibbert, M.D., M.P.H., a board-certified general surgeon, and his wife Omelda Hibbert, B.S.N., R.N., of Punta Gorda, Florida. The Hibberts have been involved in taking medicine to this nation in western Africa for 15 years and have established a free medical/dental clinic and physician assistant school in Barmenda—the capital of the north- west region. Because they have successfully trained eight classes of young Cameroonians, the graduates are now independently operating clinics in remote villages and providing urgently needed medical and surgical care. There are 50 students currently enrolled in the couple’s Cameroonian PA school, called Open Door Med- ical Development. The school specifically caters to students who would not otherwise be able to afford an education. The program takes three years to com- plete and allows students the unique opportunity of interning at various hospitals in Cameroon. During a recent visit to the Fort Myers Campus, the Hibberts discussed their faith-based school, which BY JANET SPARKER M.S., PA-C, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR A free clinic in Cameroon, Africa, is under construction. Program Provides Aid in Cameroon Physician Assistant FORT MYERS