For anyone still interested about what's really going on at SJB, a couple of new developments have arisen, that are rather pertinent.
First off, let me just say that I'm an MS-1 student at SJB, and unlike the apparently popular perception of SJB students (valid or invalid), I actually had a choice in coming to SJB. Not only that, I chose it over another US medical school--a DO school, if you find that relevant, but that hardly mattered to me. The reason I tell you this is to head off any accusations of "bias" or ulterior motives on my part. This is because, in all honesty, I am biased towards this school; as I would hope most medical students would be, on those rare occasions requiring them to represent their school outside of intercollegiate athletics. But regardless of my declared "conflicts of interest," I'm not here to "sell" SJB, nor convince anyone to change their opinions of this school, whatever they may be. One's personal decision whether or not to come here is just that: personal. And one's opinion--of SJB, or anything that lies between Heaven and Earth--should be based on their own thoughts and experiences, and as much accurate information as is available, rather than the opinions and anonymous web-postings of complete and total strangers.
Instead, I offer the information I have at my disposal, and my own opinion--but only if you care to ask for it, either here or in a private message.
On a similar note, a disclaimer: I cannot (and will not) speak for the general SJB student body, since I am neither on the Student Gov., nor so arrogant as to think that everyone happens to feel the same way that I do. All I can offer is my own perspective, my own personal opinion, my own experiences, and what I have personally seen and heard, myself. If you find that credible, then I am flattered, and humbled by your trust. If you don't, then I respect your opinion, and kindly ask that you share any (sourced) information that I might not be privy to.
On that note, this is what I know, and what I have been told:
Yesterday (February 29th, 2012), the LCME's site visit team left SJB's campus, after a three-day official site visit to evaluate the school for its previously-schedule review of accreditation, as stipulated by the LCME's appeals panel, which awarded the school probationary accreditation back in November of 2011, pending the results of the original site visit scheduled for the Spring 2012 semester. Prior to leaving, the site visit team held an "exit summary" session with the school administrators to go over their findings, and give them a preview of the contents of the report they will be submitting to the LCME for consideration. Immediately after that, the administration held a meeting with the SJB faculty, staff, and student body, to go over the topics discussed at the exit summary.
They (the administration) spoke about how the exit summary they received was generally very positive. The LCME site visit team explained that they were very pleased with the positive changes and direction the school is heading. They cited the school's preparation of the database required by the LCME as one area worthy of particular mention.
They (the LCME site visit team) also mentioned how pleased they were with the school's work in research, and the faculty research going on in other universities. They noted the students' dedication to service and service learning projects, and feel that the extracurricular activities are well organized. They found Financial Aid services to be very good. They also noted that the financial situation of the school is adequate and stable, and that they were very pleased with the morning meeting they had with the Secretary of Health of Puerto Rico, and the assurances made at that meeting--both to them, and to the school.
The LCME site visit team also acknowledged that there have been a number of strategies and improvements implemented in the Basic Sciences; however, more data needs to be collected (and thus, more time needs to pass) before they can quantitatively establish to what degree they have been effective. Thus, the administration stated that they expect a great deal of follow-up from the LCME with respect to their progress, and the need to periodically send further of documentation showing that progress. The LCME site visit team also mentioned how the USMLE scores have continued to improve, although they did mention their desire to see them continue to rise even higher in the future.
(But then again, don't we all? ^_^)
The LCME site visit committee said that a positive outcome of the accreditation loss, was that it prompted SJB to create many more affiliations with hospitals, in order to establish a more comprehensive set of clinical education resources. They did mention that specific rotations needed to be modified, and that protocols and agreements need to be made as part of ongoing contingency plans for certain situations.
One thing the LCME site visit team made a point of emphasizing, however, was that their mandate was to simply report their findings, and that (as with all official site visits) it is up to the LCME Committee at large to take that information, and based on those results, to make their decisions and recommendations accordingly. The LCME team also noted before they left that they were very impressed with the students, their commitment to serving others, and their deep and evident desire to practice medicine.
They also offered us some procedural notes, which were part of other meetings and information sent out well in advance of the site team's visit. As I understand it, LCME policy in regards to official site visits are as follows: after the site visit team leaves, they have 30 days to compile the information they collected and issue a preliminary draft report to the school. After receiving the draft report, SJBSM has 30 days to issue any notes, clarifications, rebuttals, or responses to the report, at which point they send the annotated report back to the LCME, which then has 30 days to review their notes and attach any further commentary or clarification they feel is necessary. After that, the completed and finalized report is sent to the LCME committee for review, which issues their decision at their next regularly-scheduled meeting, which I believe is some time in June of this year.
After issuing their decision, the school has another 30 days to accept or issue an appeal to that decision. If they choose to appeal, the LCME must schedule an appeals hearing no more than 30 days later. At the appeal, the panel considers all the information and arguments presented by both the LCME and the school's representatives, and after the appeals panel adjourns, they must issue their final recommendation no less than 30 days later, and which is effective immediately, upon release.
(NB: All of this assumes that neither the school nor the LCME requests additional time to collect their data, organize their findings, or construct their responses--which has been known to happen, albeit infrequently)
Thus, the earliest that we could have an official, final word from the LCME is some time in June--and realistically, probably well after that.
Hopefully, this clarifies matters somewhat. ^_^
