About US

The mission of the Baptist Institute of Health Science (BIHS; the Institute) is to provide healthcare professionals with a solid foundation in the medical sciences, clinical care, and medical research skills, to provide patients with holistic healthcare with Christ-like compassion. This mission filters down to the “Centres” (Departments) under the Institute.  Currently, the Baptist Institute is composed of four Centres: The Centre for Advanced Medical Training (post-graduate physician specialty training in surgery, internal medicine, and head and neck surgery), the Centre for Nursing and Allied Health Sciences, the Centre for Public Health, and the Centre for Healthcare Research.

  
Health is more than the absence of disease or bodily dysfunction. Health is understood holistically to include a person’s physical, spiritual, psychological, social, and environmental well-being.  BIHS faculty teach and model a holistic understanding of care for patients; the focus is not simply on the curative and physical aspects of health care.  The faculty and staff also care for their students holistically.

Science is the foundation for all health professionals’ education, even though this education does not exclude the spiritual aspects of health. The “facts” students are taught are the result of others’ systematic study of the physical world through observation and experiment, resulting in objective data that is utilized to inform health care.  Students are taught how to evaluate and compare current scientific studies, as well as how to undertake their research.

Education at various levels (diploma, bachelor’s and master’s degrees, and post-graduate physician training) is in three main realms:  academic knowledge, clinical skills, and personal development.  The integration of students’ growth in these three areas results in well-rounded graduates who have a holistic understanding of their work and their patients.  Adult learning theory undergirds education at the Institute.

Academic knowledge –This cognitive knowledge is scientific, evidence-based facts that are the basis for the problem-solving and critical thinking that takes place in patient diagnosis and treatment intervention.  Reading and lectures are good ways to transmit facts but are the most ineffective ways to remember those facts and apply them to real-life solutions.  Thus, when lectures are used in teaching, they are accompanied by active learning strategies including question-and-answer time, class discussions, procedure demonstrations, role-plays, hands-on practice, and case-based learning opportunities.  Problem-based teaching is utilized whenever applicable. 

Clinical skills – Students must learn how to apply their academic knowledge in real-life settings with actual patients, otherwise, the knowledge learned is inadequate.  Students learn to apply their knowledge through well-planned, supervised clinical experiences in a high-level teaching hospital and/or a busy urban clinic. Patient care includes illness and dysfunction prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and health teaching.  Clinical skills are best taught alongside and integrated with didactic knowledge.

 
Personal and professional growth – Knowing scientific facts and applying this knowledge in an inpatient setting is insufficient for the creation of an effective clinician.  Personal and professional characteristics and skills are also necessary.  Our students are exposed to Bible studies for their spiritual discipleship and growth. They study the social sciences for a better understanding of effective communication, leadership, social responsibility, self-discipline, professional ethics, and intellectual humility. The work of any health care provider (physician, nurse practitioner, laboratory technician, physiotherapist, etc.) is not done alone. The BIHS faculty models collaboration with other members of the health team, excellent communication skills, and positive interaction between the students, their faculty mentors, their colleagues across the healthcare community, and their patients. The highest value personal characteristics which are both taught and modeled include personal integrity, empathy, compassion, humility, honesty, and trustworthiness.  Students learn to show respect to everyone and not discriminate, regardless of the other person’s ethnic background, age, sex, religious beliefs, physical ability, or socioeconomic status.  They learn to be sensitive to linguistic and communication differences and show good listening skills as well as patience in their interactions. For the most effective education to take place, there must be a balance between academic knowledge, clinical skills, and personal characteristics.  These should be integrated, not isolated from each other in either time or place.  Clinical and academic faculty need excellent communication and cooperation with each other to provide appropriate clinical cases (experiences) that will illustrate and reinforce the scientific facts students learn.  Students’ clinical experiences also allow them to apply and demonstrate (often subconsciously) their personal and professional values, ethics, and integrity.  This integrated education is a high value of the Baptist Institute of Health Sciences.  Thus, education at the Baptist Institute of Health Sciences consists of the integration of evidence-based academic and clinical knowledge taught through excellent communication, interaction, and cooperation between the academic faculty, the clinical faculty, and the students.  Students learn academic knowledge and clinical skills and develop their personal and professional characteristics.  They are equipped to grow in their spiritual lives and their ethics, integrity, and communication skills.  Students learn to understand and care for their patients holistically and not focus simplistically on only the health problems that brought their patients to seek health care.  

Accreditation

Training programs offered by the Baptist Institute of Health Sciences are accredited by the Ministry of Higher Education of Cameroon.  The curriculum for each program is carefully developed to meet the standards required in Cameroon. Teaching faculty are recruited locally and internationally to deliver the highest quality of education possible for our students.