partners
learn more about those we work with to make micronesia a healthier place
College of Micronesia-FSM
The College of Micronesia-FSM is the home of the DDFT program. COM-FSM is the public community college system serving the Federated States of Micronesia, as well as surrounding USAPI jurisdictions. COM-FSM is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges as recognised by the US Department of Education. COM-FSM has campuses in all fours states of the FSM as well as a career vocational campus in Kolonia, Pohnpei, and a fisheries and marine campus in Yap. The DDFT program was founded in 2017, and placed at the national campus of COM-FSM in Palikir, FSM, as this was the historical site of the Pacific Basin Medical Officers Training Program, which during its lifetime (mid-1980s to mid-1990s) provided dozens of practicing physicians and healthcare leaders to the Pacific basin, many of who are still practicing today. Founded in 1963 as a teachers college, COM-FSM now boasts a wide-range of programs developed to fit the needs of Micronesia. In addition to being home to the DDFT program, COM-FSM is home to the Public Health Training Program and the Nursing Program, both of which work alongside DDFT to fill critical gaps in the healthcare workforce of the FSM.
I-Shou University and E-Da Hospital, Taiwan
Founded in 1986, I-Shou University is a private university located in Taiwan. The University is home to ten colleges ranging from science and technology to the college of medicine and dentistry. The medical campus, which was opened in 2006 to accommodate the college of medicine, is located near E-Da Hospital, which provides advanced medical, dental, and other services, such as cutting-edge cancer treatments, cardiovascular interventions, dental implants, bariatric surgery, liver transplants, robotic surgery, and more. I-Shou/E-Da are at the cutting-edge of healthcare research, education, and provision in the Asia-Pacific region. E-Da/I-Shou are critical partners for the DDFT program, providing direct dental services during on-site visits to Micronesia, continuing dental education to Micronesian oral health staff during in-person visits 5-6 times per year, as well as monthly educational seminars online, teledental services by providing access to specialist dentists and others who consult on difficult cases with local oral health staff, recruitment and teaching of DDFT students both online and during in-person visits, strategic and operational planning, and more. The partnership between DDFT and I-Shou/E-Da has been critical to the success of the program.
Hawaii/Pacific Basin AHEC
The Hawaii/Pacific Basin Area Health Education Center is located on the campus of the John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of Hawaii. With centers across the State of Hawaii, as well as American Samoa, Palau, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Marshall Islands. The Hawaii AHEC serves the largest area of any AHEC in the United States. AHEC provides accredited, high quality continuing education offerings and professional support to meet the needs of healthcare professionals across the Pacific. These programs are designed to enhance clinical skills and help maintain professional certifications. Additionally, AHEC works to recruit and retain qualified healthcare providers across the region through targeted recruiting, loan forgiveness, and workforce studies. DDFT partners with AHEC in these efforts, leveraging staff and other resources, to ensure a sustainable supply of healthcare providers for the future by providing a glide path from high school to becoming a licensed provider.
Penn Foster College, Arizona
Penn Foster College has been a partner of the DDFT program almost since its inception. Through its innovative partnership with Penn Foster, DDFT is able to deliver online instruction in dental assisting resulting in a career diploma as a dental assistant. This innovative program has allowed Micronesia to increase the number of oral health providers, as well as providing dental assistant graduates with satisfying and essential careers. Graduates can enjoy a successful career as a dental assistant in Micronesia, or they can go on to become dental therapists, dental hygienists, and even dentists through DDFT’s unique program and partnerships with universities in Fiji.
Fiji National University School of Medicine, Nursing, and Health Sciences
Fiji National University, a regionally accredited university, was founded in 2010 when several smaller universities were brought together to form Fiji’s flagship university system with campuses across Fiji. The School of Medicine, Nursing, and Health Sciences is the direct descendant of the Suva Medical School, later Fiji School of Medicine, which was founded in 1885 and the Fiji School of Nursing founded in 1893, to train local physicians and nurses to care for the people of Fiji and beyond. Several graduates of the DDFT program are currently studying at FNU and will soon graduate and return as dentists, physicians, public health practitioners and more to serve the people of Micronesia. For graduates of DDFT, FNU offers programs in medicine, dental hygiene, dental therapy, dietetics and nutrition, environmental health, health promotion, health services management, medical imaging, medical laboratory sciences, nursing, pharmacy, physiotherapy, public health, clinical laboratory technology, community nutrition, applied epidemiology, and health services management. For those who graduate from the medical school at FNU or University of Fiji, and wish to specialize, there are training programs in anesthesiology, dermatology, emergency medicine, intensive care medicine, internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, ophthalmology, pediatrics, psychiatry, and general surgery.
University of Fiji Umanand Prasad School of Medicine
The University of Fiji Umanand Prasad School of Medicine is a regionally accredited university located in Lautoka in the west of Fiji. Founded in 2004, the University of Fiji provides undergraduate and graduate degrees in a wide range of disciplines including medicine (MBBS), medical health sciences, nursing, public health, and primary care. University of Fiji is the alma mater of many DDFT graduates who are now practicing physicians.
Pacific Basin Medical Officers Training Program and Robert W. Spegal
The Pacific Basin Medical Officers Training Program, which originated in the mid-1980s and lasted to the mid-1990s, trained 75 Pacific Islander medical officers at the PBMOTP campus in Pohnpei, FSM. The brainchild of a legend in Pacific healthcare, leadership, and education, Gregory J. Dever, MD, the program was highly successful and many “MO’s” are still practicing or in leadership positions across the Pacific. The program was successful in large part to the efforts of the program manager, Robert W. Spegal, MPH, seen here, who came to Micronesia in 1975 as a Peace Corps volunteer and never left. Bob Spegal, who sadly passed away in November 2021, was also a legend in bettering the health and healthcare of all Micronesians. He and Dr. Dever, who is now retired in Palau, were two of the founders of the DDFT program in 2017. And much like their legacy from the PBMOTP, their influence continues to be felt in the contemporary version of DDFT which continues to train young men and women for services throughout the islands.
US Health Resources Services Administration
The DDFT program is funded through a grant from the US government. This resource is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by HRSA, HHS, or the U.S. Government. For more information, please visit HRSA.gov.
