Vision

The Apprentice Corporation endeavors to be a positive influence in the lives of Apprentice medical professionals all over the world and to enthuse these aspiring medical professionals towards reaching their goals and dreams.

Mission Statement

Apprentice Corporation, using the trade name The Apprentice Doctor® has the mission of assisting medical professionals globally - whether aspiring, in training or practicing - with valuable medical and surgical simulation training resources and events.

We offer the following resources:

• Apprentice Doctor® Simulation Practice Kits, allowing students to practice their skills now so they don't have to practice on their patients one day.
• Apprentice Doctor® Online Academy (Accredited).
• Apprentice Doctor® Online & In-Person Training Events/Workshops.

About the Founder:

Dr. Anton Scheepers is the founder of the Apprentice Corporation and the Apprentice Doctor® brand. Dr Anton brings over 40 years of expertise in the specialized field of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.

This surgical specialty focuses on diagnosing and treating a broad range of conditions affecting the face, jaw, and both the hard and soft tissues of the head and neck region.

Fueled by the passion to nurture the next generation of healthcare professionals, Dr. Anton has organized and co-hosted an extensive array of educational programs worldwide. He is deeply committed to empowering aspiring medical practitioners to achieve their career goals.

Dr. Anton Scheepers is a lecturer at premedical and medical skills conferences and workshops internationally. He is a gifted presenter with a colorful career including some of the following highlights:

• Treating leprosy patients in a large leprosarium
• Treating soldiers and civilians in the bush war in Namibia
• Rendering medical services to prisoners, including death-row prisoners
• Working with classified and dangerous psychiatric patients in Weskoppies Hospital

His training varies between medical sciences, surgery, and dentistry. He started a medical sciences section in the largest Science Center in Africa - the Sci-Bono Discovery Science Center and was involved with medical research in collaboration with Dr. Sandy Marks Jr. from the University of Massachusetts. Experience includes academic, public, military as well as private practice.

Dr. Anton Scheepers has written articles in various publications of International Medical Journals on subjects such as:

• Penetrating injuries of the head and neck
• Histoplasmosis
• Dental treatment of the psychiatric patient
• Various articles on Oral Manifestations of Leprosy
• In addition to the publications, Dr. Scheepers has presented papers at numerous national and international conferences

Awards and commendations include:

• P Grant Smith Gold medal for Maxillofacial Surgery
• The College of Medicine Silver Medal in Maxillofacial Surgery
• The Michael and Janie Miller Prize final year Surgery
• Commendation for excellent service rendering by the Director of the Department of Health
• Commendation for excellent service rendering by the director of Prison services

The Origins of Apprentice Doctor®

The Apprentice Doctor® idea materialized in 2002 when Dr. Anton Scheepers felt a desire to offer aspiring doctors and related medical professionals a glimpse into the field of medicine. The idea was to offer the student a hands-on experience and thus the concept of an 'online course and simulation practice kit' combination.

The First Training Kit

The first course & kit combination was the Junior Apprentice Doctor® "How to Examine Patients" Course and Kit. We have upgraded both several times and today it is known as the For Future Doctors Simulation Kit and is paired with the Foundation Medical Course on Apprentice Doctor Academy. This is now an accredited pre-medical course for high schoolers in the USA.

Other Apprentice Doctor® course & kits combinations are:

• How to Suture Wounds course which is paired with the Compact, Standard, or Deluxe Suture Practice Kits.
• Venipuncture & Phlebotomy Course paired with the Venipuncture Training Kit
• Control Bleeding Course paired with the Control Bleeding Practice Kit
• Orthopedic Fracture Reduction Course paired with the Orthopedic Practice Kit
• Sterility & Aseptic Technique Course paired with the Scrub for Surgery Kit

These kits are aimed at students in the medical field who want to learn how to suture. The idea of a simulation lab in a box with instructions (instead of learning how to perform medical skills on a real patient in the clinical setting) seemed to have been well accepted by those in the medical education arena worldwide.

What Does the Future Hold?

We are in the process of expanding the range of kits and courses.

We offer a number of very popular international Apprentice Doctor® Training Events per year aimed at high school students interested in following a career in medicine.

Other Apprentice Doctor clinical skills workshops include: Suturing, Phlebotomy & Venipuncture, Examine Patients & Diagnosis, Airway Management and others.

Partnerships

The Apprentice Doctor synergizes with a number of professionals and organizations with similar goals:

• A number of AHEC Summer Camps Programs
• The B.E.S.T. (Brain Expansions Scholastic Training) Program preparing the brain for maximal performance – of course, essential for studying medicine!
• Prof Nathan Mowa – APU – Medical Research, Physiology and Biology.
• Sci-Bono Discovery Centre
• Dr. Godfrey Sears PsyD, NPSYP, MPP, MPPQ, BMPQ; Psychology/Psychiatry and Neurology
• Dr. Dexter Frederick MD – Double board certified – Pediatrics and Internal Medicine

In 2023 Professor Mowa Became Chancellor of Apprentice Doctor Academy

Professor Chishimba Nathan Mowa is a seasoned research-orientated high-level academic with a long list of publications, abstracts, and presentations at conferences nationally and internationally.

Besides his academic interests, Prof Mowa has a heart for aspiring medical professionals - promoting and assisting them in reaching their goals and dreams, as many of his alumni students who are now qualified physicians and surgeons will confirm.

Dr. Mowa was appointed as Assistant Professor of Biology at Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina, and rose to full Professor at the same university. Appalachian State University is a member of the University of North Carolina.

Most recently, he served as an Associate Dean of Research and Scholarship at Kettering College, Dayton, Ohio, USA, and Professor of Physiology, Anatomy, and Endocrinology in the Department of Human Biology at Kettering College. He is also currently an honorary Professor of Physiology at Levy Mwanawasa Medical University, Lusaka, Zambia.

Prof Mowa was born and raised in Zambia and is married to his college sweetheart, Ennie Hamoya-Mowa. Together, they have had three children: Nonde, Shoma, and their late son, Mowa.

See some of his publications on PubMed: Click here

For more on Prof. Mowa, click here

Endorsements and Accreditation

Apprentice Doctor® Courses are the part of the official course material of:

• The Duke University Apprentice Doctor® Chapter
• The University of South Florida associated BEST Academy
• The ASU’s (Appalachian State University) Apprentice Doctors and Scientists Program
• Numerous Area Health Educational Centers’ (AHEC) Summer Camps
• The Apprentice Doctor® Chapter at A&M University, College Park TX
• The Apprentice Doctor® Chapter at Round Rock High School, Austin TX
• The Johannesburg Sci-Bono Discovery Science Center (as part of the National Department of Education)

It is also accredited via the Solid Rock Community and Virtual Schools in Tampa Florida, USA with:

• AdvancED – which is the largest community of education professionals in the world
• The National Association of Private Schools (NAPS)
• The Florida Coalition of Christian Private Schools Association (FCCPSA)