TheAuricleOctober 2014

The rural experience 2nd time round

Plus much much more from the Surgical

Society and EnSIGN.

The Social ReportScoop from the Medsoc mole

Congratulations to the ANU Medical Students’ Society 2015 committee

Congratulations to the Interyear Cup Winners

AMSA 2014

Dear Students,

As the academic year is coming to a close, I want to wish you all the best of luck on the upcoming exams. It is time for all the hard work that was put in throughout the year to pay off!

The 2015 MedSoc Committee was elected in October, with record numbers of nominations and votes! I would like to congratulate the incoming Committee and cannot wait to see what they bring in 2015.

I would also like to thank all the nominees for their interest in the ANU Medical Students’ Society. I admire the enthusiasm and encourage everyone to stay active and involved. Additional hands are always needed in MedSoc as well as Subcommittees and I am certain your skills and dedication would be warmly welcomed!

We have tried to keep students up-to-date throughout the year, but I acknowledge this is sometimes a difficult task. For those still wondering what MedSoc does, I have provided an overview of our 2014 activities below – and this doesn’t include all the things that don’t fit nicely into those categories.

The next event on the calendar is the Graduation Ball on 19 December. Buy your tickets now and come and celebrate with the class of 2014!

Lauren O’RourkeANUMSS President

President From the

Editors’ noteCongratulation to the 4th years for finishing their exams and good luck to everyone else for their upcoming exams. Many thanks again to everyone who contributed to this edition and my assistant for proof reading all the articles, considering how close we are getting to the exams!!!

Yi Fan TangPublications Officer

AMSA Report Hello again ANU rangers,

I hope everyone has survived the Canberra winter and slowly defrosting for some glorious sunshine ready for end of year exam study.

Here goes the report on the happenings of AMSA and AMSA @ ANU since the last time we spoke.

Prior to attending second council, we ran another ThinkTank in May where Anna Szuzbert of Year 2 presented her draft policy of gender equality which she hopes to bring to 3rd council 2014 in Hobart. It is great to see ANU students getting involved with AMSA and learning about the wonderful opportunities available to medical students.

At the most recent council held in Adelaide in July, council passed the elusive BMP policy and managed to get the point about reducing return of service obligations removed from the AMSA policy; a big step forward! All other policies put to the table at second council were passed. They included universal health care policy, an appropriate review in light of the recent GP Co-Payment proposal, quality clinical placement policy and international medical student career development policy, among others. Continuing advocacy on internship positions has occurred during 2014 in hopes to reduce the number of international students who miss out on an internship. However with the removal of the PGPPP program, cuts to south Australian internships had to occur and was up for discussion at second council.

With the release of the federal government’s budget proposal, AMSA has been campaigning against deregulation of university fees. With letters sent to MPs, the issue of medical school fees got a mention in the Australian governments Higher Education and Research Reform Amendment Bill 2014. Just highlighting the potential impact that AMSA and ourselves as medical students can have on politicians and policy development within the country.

Vampire cup has been completed with an extension of 2 weeks, which saw ANUMSS get more donations than we were expecting and just topping our score from last year to come second behind Deakin…again. Fantastic efforts from everyone involved, this is one of the great events that AMSA run each year and I hope that next year ANUMSS can do even better.

And of course, AMSA National convention was once again a wonderful event which brought students from across all year levels and all universities together to form infallible friendships. Be sure to read all about the students experience in an article published in this issue of the auricle.

Be on the lookout for all the exciting opportunities to get involved with AMSA. AMSA academy was launched this year and has seen sessions on global health, mental health and sexual health. AMSA academy consists of online modules of varying duration which you can complete live or in your own time, a great way to further you knowledge in an area of interest and learn in a fun and exciting manner. AMSA advocates is another new initiative by AMSA this year and if you want to know how to get more involved with advocacy, learn skills and advocate on issues you are passionate about then this one is for you. The first session will be related to refugee and asylum seeker mental health.

That’s it from me for now,

Any questions, you can contact me at amsa@anumss.org.

Alex BrownAMSA Representative

For seven days and seven nights in July, 14 ANU medical students joined another 1844 medical students and embarked on the journey to Adelaide for the annual AMSA National Convention. The second smallest delegation (in size but not spirit), beaten only by Bond University, the 12 convirgins and 2 rangers had a lot of work to do to continue to build a household name for ANU.

So what is AMSA convention all about? Well firstly it is the biggest student run convention in the world and draws the attention of illustrious profiles in the medical and leadership industries. For some, it conjures images of excessive drunkenness, debauchery and over-enthusiastic inter-varsity mingling. For others, it’s a chance to listen to inspiring academics, hone skills you previously learnt or to find out a little bit more about that one specialty you’ve been contemplating. The idea of our article is to dispel the myths of convention and provide insight as to what it has to offer. Whether you like finding yourself in close proximity to medical students on the social dance floor, you seek the inspiration of a rural GP or MSF Doctor, your favourite pastime is dressing up like Dora the Explorer, you enjoy a game of dodgeball, you want the chance to present your research at a national conference, or to test your med school knowledge in the emergency medical challenge, or you prefer the smoky back rooms playing insane drinking games. Convention literally has something for everyone.

The theme of the AMSA convention was unconventional. The message was that your career in medicine can take many unexpected twists and turns, and that anything is possible. This permeated through each evening event, which had outrageous themes and everything from a foam party to a jumping castle, and was explored by the incredible guest speakers throughout the week.

Patch Adams was an enthralling speaker. He has no technology – no mobile, no computer. He only corresponds with people via letters, he writes between 400 and 600 a month and has never received a letter that he hasn’t replied to. An amazing doctor, who spends at least 4 hours with a patient during the initial consultation, and has never made money out of his medical career because he chooses to provide a free service, could you imagine doing that for every patient?

One of the non doctor guests was Karni Liddell; a para-olympian born with spinal muscular atrophy. Speaking about overcoming barriers to achieve your goals. Her main message was amazing – not to underestimate how providing hope for your patients can change their outcome or their quality of life. She also stressed the importance of good parenting and how a caring and supportive environment can make all the difference to a child’s health and wellbeing.

A doctor-magician, Dr Vyom Sharma who upon realizing he was burnt out from medicine,took time out of his medical career to focus on another passion of his – magic. He ended up touring around the globe as a magician honing in on his powers of misdirection and sleight of hand.

One of the highlights of the week was when Tom Shaw led ANU to victory in the competition to discover Australia’s Brainiest Medical Student. By the end of the competition there wasn’t a single person left in the hall who didn’t appreciate that ANU medical students are forces to be reckoned with.

The true value of what we gained from every single day in Adelaide is immeasurable. We were completely in awe of the amazing speakers we heard and the sense of community and spirit the other medical schools have. Convention was an incredible week involving the formation of new friendships and networks across Australia. We all walked away having gained insight into the potential of our careers, feeling motivated to become the best doctors we can be, and inspired to think outside the box.

Year 1 - Pip DossetorApril Pascoe Rachel Cryer

Steph BaddockMark VanZeyl

Year 2 - Kristy Mebberson, Monica Lamberton

Harry PickupJoel Adams-Bedford

Tom ShawYear 3 - Sarah Davis

Alex Brown Year 4 - Emma Borg Michael Marginson

AMSA Convention#rAdelaide #Quack

Social Report by the MedSoc Mole...

I know a magical placeWhere the Fairies go to play

And this year, one enchanting eveningWe were invited to stay

Fireflies flickered In the forest of green

And all aroundSmiles could be seen

All who attended looked stunningI’m sure you don’t need proof

And to top it all offMany donned wings at the photobooth

There was music and singingAs laughter filled the room

When friends came togetherTo dance under the moon

And as every adventure mustSo ended the night of cheer

Some let the magic continue onAnd to all others, we will see you next year!

EnSIGNGlobal Health Speaker & I CARE Charity EveningEnSIGN’s global health speaker nights are quite well-known within the ANU medical student body and they usually involve pizza, drinks and an inspirational academic speaker. This year, the committee decided to completely revamp this annual event by merging it with a fundraiser for a highly worthy cause. If you’ve been following global current affairs, you would know about the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Iraq that has been ravished by war for decades. In fact, there are over 5.5 million orphans without access to care and with the recent ISIS invasion; the healthcare system has been left in tatters. This is why we chose to support the I CARE (Iraqi Children Aid & Repair Endeavour), a non-profit charity organisation founded in New Zealand that aims to provide disadvantaged children in Iraq with free medical and dental care.

The night kicked off with a scrumptious display of baked goodies donated by some of our most talented medical students; chocolate cake, melting moments, meringue kisses and baklava were some of the mouth-watering selections on sale. And yes we catered to all dietary requirements, including vegan Earl Grey cupcakes, gluten-free brownies and even tabouli for those with a savoury-tooth! On top of that, we had a henna tattoo booth which was a popular stop throughout the evening.

Once all the attendees were present, we started the screening of “Iraq’s Deadly Legacy”, a short SBS Dateline documentary on the increasing number of babies born with severe deformities and children developing leukemia in certain parts of Iraq. Following the documentary, Professor David Croaker, a paediatric surgeon at TCH, provided a talk on his experiences working in Gaza and Nepal. He presented a few interesting cases that he encountered overseas, highlighting the difficulties of long-term care post-surgery in under-supplied hospitals.Everyone found the talk quite interesting, especially since Prof Croaker put the audience in his position and asked “Would YOU operate on this case?” It made us all appreciate the high level of decision-making involved in surgery, particularly when one must weigh out the benefits against the high possibility of debilitating complications for the patient. The night ended with a raffle prize draw which consisted of the 9th edition of the Oxford Handbook of Clinical Medicine, a $50 Coles-Myer gift voucher and 12 more books donated by Clouston& Hall Booksellers – there were lots of happy faces!

Zainab RidhaEnSIGN Publicity Officer

A taste of the Country: second year rural week

EurobodallaThe ANU rural program aims at giving students an exposure to rural and regional NSW communities in order to gain an understanding of rural life and an exposure to the types of issues facing communities. The 2014 2nd Year Rural week ran from 11-15 Aug with a crew of cheery eyed students embarking on the bus to Batemans Bay on a beautiful Canberra winter day. With impending research project submissions bearing down on the group, a week away at the beach was a prospect that many of the students were looking forward to.

The first day involved a leisurely bus trip over the mountains to the coast, settling into the accommodation at the classy Clyde Motor Inn and a brief stroll down to the pub to partake in some fine regional beverages. The group received a warm reception from Professor Barnard and the local rural clinical school staff at the welcome dinner before a few more drinks, some pool and darts at the local Soldiers Club.

Tuesday in sunny Batemans saw many keen students awake bright and early to partake in some cardiovascular conditioning in the beautifully refreshing coastal sun before a delicious continental breakfast. Following a quick tour of the clinical school and a lecture from a local paramedic the group set off to talk to a group of cancer survivors about their experiences. The group found this extremely enlightening experience and took away so much from the experience on both a personal and professional level.

Following this Batemans rural week students were split up into Youth, Primary Production and Geriatric sub-groups. Each of these groups spent time with their respective Eurobodalla demographics to gain an understanding of the challenges facing each of these individual community members. Through a toe-curling trip to the abattoir, visits to nursing homes and engagement with high school kids and other community youth groups, all students were able to acquire a unique appreciation of the health issues that face these different components of the community.

Other highlights during the week included a dip in the chilly east coast waters, being hosted by various community members for dinner as well as the welcoming attitude all students experienced whilst wondering around Batemans. The week culminated in some unique presentations from each of the sub-groups which were assessed as highly commendable by the rural clinical staff and the principal of the Batemans Bay High School. Overall the Batemans rural week was one that was enjoyed thoroughly by all students and is certainly an experience that will stick firmly and fondly in all students minds.

Liam Stone

On Monday 11th August a bunch of second year students put on their best flannies and headed out to the beautiful town of Young. The week was spent eating many cherry based foods (Young is the cherry capital of Australia), experiencing Indigenous culture, meeting with the local community and experiencing rural medicine through the Pitstop program, placements at the local hospital and other allied healthcare facilities. We also got to experience an alternative side of medicine when we visited YLAD living soils and got down and dirty to learn about the importance of soil in the production of nutritious, healthy foods. Everyone was pretty excited when we got to put on hard hats and fluorescent coloured vests to go investigate the soil. On Thursday night we all went to community dinners where we were fed till bursting point but had an incredible time with our hosts. In our spare time we also manage to squeeze in some trivia and Karaoke at the local pubs. Overall it was a great week and highlighted the need of doctors in rural areas as well as the many positive aspects of living in a rural community.

Natasha Singh

Young

CoomaOur week in Cooma proved to be a charming experience which revealed several surprising aspects about rural health and life I did not expect to learn about. The Cooma group itself was broken into three smaller groups, each designated to learn about healthcare either in the elderly community, in the snowy regions, or on the farmlands. Our activities largely involved interviewing people from each area, and some of us also had the opportunity to visit specialized facilities such as the hydrotherapy pool, the sexual health clinic, or the GP super clinic that was just recently completed.

Admittedly, I had questioned the value of rural week given its short duration and the prearranged nature of the experience. What I soon found very intriguing and enjoyable however, were the stories I got to hear from our interviews and conversations with the locals.Partly so because they dispelled several mistaken notions I had about rural healthcare. For example distance to health services, at least for Cooma, wasn’t as big of an issue or concern to the people there as I had previously thought. It actually took most people a much shorter time to get to their local hospital than most of us around ANU could to ours. Most people we spoke to didn’t even really mind that they had to travel to Canberra or Sydney for specialized treatment. They did however bring up concerns about arranging such trips especially for those without much financial capacity or familial support. It’s difficult enough to take time off from farm work, but for many people it’s also difficult to arrange for transport and extended accommodation in distant cities.

Though we’ve known for some time that mental health, especially those of male farmers, has been an increasingly important issue in rural areas, I did not expect that inheritance to be such a major contributor many people’s stress. It doesn’t appear to be a topic that is usually discussed widely between farming families, and can be a significant problem for either the younger or older generation of the family depending on the circumstances. The older generation may fear that if they declared their will to their children too early, they’d be less inclined to take care of them as they grew older. As the younger generation start establishing their own families however, they can also start to worry about whether they will be given enough to support their own family, or should they leave the farm and find another source of income. Since horror stories for either generations have occurred, it’s a very real issue for many families and understandably so.

These were but a few of many things we were able to learn from talking to Cooma locals. As important as it is to raise awareness about the specific challenges and disparities of rural health, I have come to realise that it is just as important to start raising awareness about the general culture and lifestyle of rural communities. Understanding such aspects serve as the basis by which we can then anticipate and understand the sources from which the major challenges of rural healthcare stem from. It’s a principle that is used to understand healthcare in pretty much any unique community really. However, our preconceptions of such communities can often give us a false sense of understanding, which then prevents us from seeing the practicalities and priorities of how we approach healthcare in these communities. My doubts about the value of rural week was perhaps a reflection of forgetting the importance of getting first hand perspectives from community members. I am glad I had the opportunity to be humbled by the stories these people.

Jeremy Chou

In early August I attended rural week in the town of Harden. The town has a population of about 2000 people, with a large farming industry.Wendy Hobson was there to greet us with a sunny smile and gift bags, along with Brian Dunn who gave us information about Harden. I realised I had met Brian before, through the Harden “Pit Stop” Health Check day when I had visited there before in May. He recognised me as the “smiling one”, which thankfully was a compliment!

On the day we arrived Dr Sazeedul Islam and Dr Jennifer Rahman were the only medical doctors in Harden, as Dr Khalfan had retired the week before and Dr Jahan was away. It made it hard for Dr Islam, but he managed well with Jennifer and the other lovely ladies working at the Kruger centre. He always took care to make sure we understood what was going on. I really appreciate the experience I got from him and the time he gave us.

Harden had a brand-new medical facility called the Kruger centre, as well as a hospital. The nurses who were situated at the hospital specialise in wound care and health checks, while keeping an eye on patients before they advance to more serious complications. The ability to do home visits in conjunction with Flexible Care made me realise this is a key strategy to maintain the prevention of sickness and overall good health of the population.

I met many newborn babies during the week. We don’t get exposure to babies until our third year, so learning all the reflexes, pages and pages of questions to ask mothers, and learning what is normal has been great for me. At the moment we are learning about nervous system disorders where, in certain conditions, neurological regression happens and newborn baby reflexes come back. Seeing a video is one thing, but doing it in real life is another.

The Flexible Care services in Harden are aimed towards older residents, and are completely staffed by volunteers. It involves Meals on Wheels, social outings, and transport to larger medical sites. I began to see that without the amazing community spirit in Harden, many people would not be able to live independently. In the middle of the week we did a “Pit Stop” Health check again, this time with the Harden Shire Council workers. They were all very friendly and even cooked us breakfast. There were several things I had never done before, like blood glucose finger pricks and risk assessments of sleep apnoea. It was good to put some theory into practice.

It was also pretty sweet when we were on the local Town newsletter. Many people put in the time and effort to meet with us, tell their stories, and feed us. I particularly want to thank the families that took us to their homes for dinner, everyone that showed up for the cancer survivor interview, and Sam and Tony for hosting our farewell dinner. We all had a great time.

Charmaine Likidis

Harden

Coming into Medical School, one society that always piques everyone’s interest is the elusive Surgical Society. The fact that we are deprived of anything surgical in Year 1 only adds to the mystery of this clandestine profession. But on August 21, the veil was pulled back, and we finally had a night strictly dedicated to the vocation of ‘healing with steel’.The theme of the night was ‘Future of Surgery’, which provided the speakers a platform to divulge where they think their vocation is headed, and to appreciate how far surgery has come.

First up was Orthopaedic Surgeon Dr. Sindy Vrancic, who provided a compelling account of how gaining entry into one of the most competitive surgical specialties solely requires the will to get there, and it can be achieved without putting your life on hold (but requires a lot of moving around!).

Next up was the captivating Interventional Radiologist extraordinaire, A/Prof John Cockburn, who hypnotized the audience with his rapid-fire wit and affectionately sardonic view of Surgeons.

Third in line was Dr Carolyn Cho, a general surgeon whose views on the evolving field of Oncoplastics offered a great insight on just how far surgery has progressed, far-removed from the Halsted Radical mastectomies that were common until the early 1970’s.

The final speaker, Prof. Guan Chong, gave an astute reminder that technical innovation is not tantamount to improved patient care, and aspiring surgeons should keep in mind that no technical advancement will ever replace the healing power of the Clinician.

It was a great night, and as a newly indoctrinated Year 1 Medical Student, I got to appreciate the hard work that goes into planning wonderful events such as these. Thanks to all the people that made it happen, and I definitely will be looking forward to Surgical Symposium 2015!

Ashod KherlopianANU Surgical Society First- Year Rep.

ANU Surgical Symposium ‘The Future of Surgery’

The 23rd & 24th of August 2014 was a historic weekend for the future of surgery in Australasia – for the first time, surgical society presidents & representatives from every single medical school in Australia & New Zealand came together for the Inaugural ASLS. I had the privilege of representing ANU Surgical Society for this momentous occasion.

The 2014 ASLS was hosted in Gold Coast at the Griffith University Medical School, next to the brand new Gold Coast University Hospital. The symposium was organized into two streams: the leadership stream for the surgical society leaders & the general stream which accommodated hundreds of delegates. The aim of this symposium was to inspire passion for surgical technology, innovation and leadership, and its mission was to broaden attendee’s perspectives by considering the educational, ethical, emergency and technological perspectives of surgery.

I had a wonderful time at this symposium. In addition to listening to inspirational speakers, the highlight was meeting with surgical society presidents from all the other medical schools. It was a rare opportunity to be able to meet in person and share the success and challenges that we faced at our respective medical schools. In addition to building long-lasting friendships, I am hopeful that the connections that were built will result in exciting future collaborations. I am also confident that the lessons that I have learnt through this fruitful exchange of ideas will no doubt benefit ANU Surgical Society and future ANU medical students.

I would encourage all ANU medical students to consider attending this symposium next year – an inspiring & once in a life-time opportunity!

John AuANU Surgical Society President 2014

Australasian Surgical Leadership Symposium

The Season in Sport...The 2014 Inter-year Cup tournament proved to be an exceptional demonstration of ANU medical students’ diverse skills, sporting talents and incredible propensity for teamwork. The competition gave students the opportunity to highlight their hand eye coordination in touch, fancy footwork in football and fast paced prowess in netball. This year we were also lucky enough to have a number of teachers and doctors join the ranks spread amongst the 4 year levels in the 10 Year Anniversary round! A huge thank you to Dr Jason Potas, Associate Professor David Harley, Associate Professor Paul Dugdale and Associate Professor Zsuzsoka Kecskes.

The purpose of the Inter-year Cup is to bring together the different year levels in the medical school for friendly bonding and relationship building while enjoying time outdoors with a cooked and catered BBQ lunch. However, though the matches are friendly there could only be one winner at the Inter-year Cup Final held on the 30th of August on sunny Fellows Oval. The matches were tough and the competition strong but the ultimate prize – the inaugural Inter-year Cup Trophy – could only go to one team. Though I’m sure it comes as little shock the trophy, which was brought to the field as a sign of good sportsmanship, was reclaimed by the back-to-back champions, the 2016 cohort!

However, never fear, there is always next year! 2015 will present the year levels another opportunity to claim the trophy and stop the 2016 students from achieving the trifecta. So please, get behind the Inter-year Cup and get your teams prepared for the 2015 season! It undoubtedly will prove to be another fun and much needed break from study in the great outdoors!

Thank you to all who were involved.

Christina HodgeWellbeing Officer

Interyear Cup 2014

ANU MEDICAL STUDENTS’ SOCIETY2015 COMMITTEE

Until the next issue...

President Chris WilderVice President Liam StoneSecretary Nick YuenTreasurer Stephen BomballAcademic and Advoacy Mike Van AlphenSponsorship Rachel CryerSocial Kristy MebbersonIT Matthew LimAMA Lauren O’RourkeAMSA Ian McConnell-WhalanPublications Sarina GloeckiInternational Kar Mun WongWellbeing TBAGraduation Ball Kelsey JoslingYear 4 Academic Nic HoltYear 4 General Gemma CurryYear 3 Academic Claire WardeYear 3 General Nic Grandjean-ThomsenYear 2 Academic Hamed ShahnamYear 2 General Sarah EllisYear 1 Academic TBAYear 1 General TBA