The International Medical Education Trust 2000 was spun out of the Northwick Park Institute for Medical Research (NPIMR) as a new UK registered charity in April, 2000. Its mission then was to exploit the research, training and education skills and resources built up within NPIMR ever since founded in 1994 by Colin Green and attempt to build up a global matrix of medical training which would exploit the IT revolution and provide inexpensive curricula of particular value to economically challenged societies overseas . In the event this proved too ambitious although the concept was warmly welcomed at a conference organised in London by IMET2000 in 2001. Lack of financial support was the crucial factor in postponement of the idea. We decided to concentrate our efforts on the Al Quds School of Medicine in Palestine and postgraduate training of the young doctors emerging from that School from 2001 onward and hoped that as the Internet took off we could return to the global concept.
Colin Green left as Director of NPIMR in 2006 and it has since thrived until recently with income derived from academic grants for its research, contract work with corporates keen to exploit its patents, unique resources and skills, and from its many training courses in partnership with University College London and the Royal Colleges of Surgeons. Faced with new challenges, it is going through a major restructuring process which it is expected will enlarge and modernise its facilities and ensure long-term stability and sustainability. These upgrading changes have been made possible by the generous financial support of the philanthropist John Griffin. The NPIMR Board of Trustees have recently honoured Colin Green with the title Emeritus Scientific Director and he has been invited to work in the Institute as a consultant and adviser in research, training and overseas development. He has accepted this invitation as he sees advantages to both NPIMR and IMET2000 if a close partnership develops. The whole concept of a global matrix becomes possible again with its HQ in Northwick Park and partners in Oxford and Cardiff collaborating in training and in research. Its research interests in tissue regeneration, wound healing, burns therapy, war surgery and lesions caused by modern weaponry are all relevant to IMET2000 work in war zones.