An ordinary meeting of the society was held on December 3rd 2008. The President was in the chair. The minutes were read and approved.
The meeting consisted of presentations by each of the medical students who had received a Foott Memorial Bursary for their elective.
First was Dahir Ali Fahir who spent his elective in Cairo. He described Cairo with its 18 million population 75% of whom are under 25 and his accommodation in a cheap downtown hotel. He was attached to the A&E department of the University Hospital, which treats over 1 million patients a year. It has few facilities, with blood stains and rusting trolleys. Anyone in a white coat is a doctor [trainers and jeans underneath de rigueur]. Services except for X-ray were free. Every time a patient attended they brought all the extended family as well. Dahir was performed suturing, canalisation, plastering, central line insertion and venepuncture. At night most patients were either stabbed or had broken limbs. The lessons he learnt were that 1.language because as he didn’t speak Arabic he realised how important it was to take your own history; 2.that family support in illness makes all the difference; 3.that guidelines are important – in Cairo anyone could do anything with no guidance or infection control and standards varied between doctors.
Second Stephanie Baker presented her trip to Peru and Bolivia. She wanted to experience medicine in a different culture. She first visited the Regional hospital in Cusco and local primary care health centres. She noted ‘appalling hygiene’ and non existent dignity for patients. She was giving i/v amphoteracin for Leishmaniasis and dealing with snake bites, TB, aspergillosis, burns, HIV. In the primary care centre she did family planning and saw malnutrition. She then moved to Bolivia where she was in the private teaching hospital in La Paz. Here standards and clinical skills were excellent as patients couldn’t afford many investigations. She saw hare lip and cleft palate frequently, as well as lots of diabetes, two local problems. She learnt the enormous difference between the two health systems and the difference that money spent in health care could make.
Rosie Isaac was third. She spent 4 weeks at the Royal in Winchester, and 4 weeks in Sydney. In Winchester she spent her time examining patients, doing ECGs, X-rays and had fantastic bedside teaching. She also worked in A&E triaging patients and helping cope with the weekend alcohol abuse, violence and abuse. In Sydney she attended a tertiary referral hospital where she worked in intensive care where transplant operations were common. Here again she received excellent teaching. Her elective was a great experience though being self funding in Southampton, money was a problem.
Dr David Rowen then thanked the Society for the support offered to medical students which, he said, really does make a difference.
The committee then met and awarded the £100 prize to Rosie Isaac.
There being no other business the meeting was closed at 10.00pm