New Tropical Medicine Diploma Course Approved by ASTMH

SJSM joins an elite roster of institutions — including Johns Hopkins, Tulane, and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine — on ASTMH’s official list.

PARK RIDGE, IL, UNITED STATES, August 11, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Saint James School of Medicine (SJSM) today announced that its Diploma in Tropical Medicine and Public Health has been formally recognized by the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH) as an approved Diploma Course satisfying requirements for the Certificate of Knowledge in Clinical Tropical Medicine and Travelers’ Health (CTropMed^®). The course is now listed on ASTMH’s official directory of approved Diploma Courses, placing SJSM among a select group of institutions worldwide recognized for meeting the Society’s rigorous curricular and clinical standards.
SJSM’s program is featured alongside those of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baylor College of Medicine, Tulane University, the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, and other leading academic medical centers on ASTMH’s current Diploma Course list.

The SJSM Diploma in Tropical Medicine and Public Health is a hybrid program that pairs an online curriculum covering the full CTropMed^® Examination Content Outline with a four-week in-person practicum in Suriname. During the in-person component, students complete approximately 40 hours of hands-on laboratory training in malaria diagnosis, stool parasitology, dermatology diagnostics, and arbovirus serology at teaching hospitals in Paramaribo, followed by a week of field immersion in Medical Mission clinics serving indigenous Amerindian and Maroon communities in Suriname’s Amazon rainforest interior. Graduates who successfully complete the program qualify to sit for the ASTMH CTropMed^® Certificate of Knowledge Examination.

“This recognition reflects the rigor and real-world clinical training our students receive throughout the program,” said Praveen Renumala, MBBS, Executive Dean of Saint James School of Medicine. “Being listed alongside some of the most respected tropical medicine programs in the world is a testament to the dedication of our faculty and staff, and it opens an important credentialing pathway for our students and graduates.”

The course is directed by Stephen Vreden, MD, PhD, and Soenita Nannan Panday-Gopising, MD, and draws on faculty and senior laboratory scientists from Suriname’s Centraal Laboratorium, Bureau of Public Health, Malaria Programma, Medische Zending, and Dermatology Service. The program is open to MDs, senior medical students who have completed core clinical rotations, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and public health professionals, and it also counts as a clinical elective rotation toward the SJSM MD degree.

The four-week in-person component contributes toward the clinical tropical medicine experience required for CTropMed^® eligibility, giving students direct exposure to health care delivery in some of the most resource-limited settings in the Western Hemisphere.

For more information about the SJSM Diploma in Tropical Medicine and Public Health, visit www.sjsm.org/tropical-medicine or contact tropicalmedicine@mail.sjsm.org.

About Saint James School of Medicine
Saint James School of Medicine is a leading Caribbean medical school. With over 25 years of experience in medical education and as one of the only family-owned schools, SJSM continues to lead the way in providing quality, affordable medical education. For more information, visit www.sjsm.org.

Dan Cuckovic
Saint James School of Medicine
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Written By: EIN Presswire