New Zealand Medical Students' Association

Wellbeing Awareness Month – September

michael — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 09:31:36 +0000

Making Medical School a better place to be

Due to the nature of our training and what we do, we as medical students are exposed to a variety of difficult and stressful situations. Most of the time we generally cope reasonably well, and discussions about “Wellbeing issues” can feel out-of-place and often associated with stigma. Despite this, there are moments where we’ve all felt more than the typical degree of stress and/or distress in our time at medical school. There is solid evidence to show that this is the case, and that our collective wellbeing suffers as a result.

Wellbeing is one of NZMSA’s big issues

NZMSA will be hosting a “Wellbeing Month” in September, one of the most stressful months of the year (exams). As a part of this, NZMSA has organised a series of events to raise awareness of wellbeing as an issue, provide practical tools to students for dealing with stress and/or distress, and deal with the stigma surrounding wellbeing issues. Moreover, a wellbeing resource we have designed with international students in mind (but very applicable to everyone) will be available on our website this September.

Want to get some more practical ways of dealing with Wellbeing issues?
Equip yourself with the skills to help you and your friends – now, and into the future.

September – Wellbeing Awareness Month

Do yourself and your friends a favour:
Lets tackle the problem of stigma around med student stress and distress
Keep checking our website or contact your local reps for Wellbeing events in your region

Vampire Cup – Annual Medical School Blood Drive

michael — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 10:48:05 +0000

Definition of “medical students”: noun, pl. Persons attending medical school who all aspire to to save lives and also happen to be very competitive…

NZMSA has got the perfect competition for you – The Vampire Cup. An annual competition between each of the medical schools (Dunedin, Christchurch, Wellington, and Auckland) to see which can donate the most blood in a calendar month (and save the most lives!).

Donate blood any time during September, register your donation on our website:
http://www.nzmsa.org.nz/events/the-vampire-cup, then rest easy knowing you have just saved 3 lives.

Contact your local NZMSA reps for details about specific donation days at your campus.

You can also donate at your regular blood centre – just head to the website to register your vote afterwards.

If you’ve already donated blood in July or August, you can register your donation immediately (since you’re not able to donate in September).

Save Lives. Give Blood.

NZMSA President Elect for 2011 Announced

michael — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 02:05:44 +0000

After serious deliberation, NZMSA Executive would like to announce the NZMSA President Elect for 2011, Oliver Hansby (5th year student from Christchurch, and President of the Christchurch Medical Students’ Association).

Winners of NZMSA Awards Announced at our AGM

michael — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 02:02:34 +0000

At the NZMSA AGM on Saturday the 7th of August, the winners of the inaugural NZMSA Awards were announced.

The NZMSA Award for Individual Excellence, recognising an outstanding contribution to the NZ medical student body, was awarded to Sylvia Ross in recognition of her excellent work as the Convenor of Conference 2010, her involvement in Country Scrubs and the Christchurch Surgical Interest Group in 2009, as well as with the MECA Conference in Dunedin.

The NZMSA Award for the Best New Student Initiative, recognising exciting and creative student-run initiatives, was awarded to the 11th Edition of the New Zealand Medical Students’ Journal (NZMSJ). This award was given in recognition of the excellent contributions the NZMSJ has made in furthering and promoting medical student research.

A big thanks to all those who nominated students and/or initiatives for the respective awards. The NZMSA Executive had a very difficult time deciding the winners of the awards, in light of the high-quality of nominations we received.

One of NZMSA’s Big Issues is Clinical Leadership. We have a commitment and a responsibility as the premier representative body for medical students to provide our members with the opportunities to develop their leadership skills, and recognise those students who have already shown excellent leadership.

NZMSA Global Health Month – August, 2010

michael — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 06:25:42 +0000

Global Health Month is now on! If you’ve always wondered what “global health” means, and what opportunities there are for NZ medical students, then this is the month for you! There are lots of avenues to get involved with global health both in medical school, and out of it. NZMSA is endeavouring to make those opportunities more accessible to our members in several ways. We have the Global Health Calendar, where you can see what global health related events are scheduled in your centre. We have a resource section, where we will put links up to various organisations that are involved in global health that medical students can get involved in. We also have contact details for the global health student groups in each centre for you to contact.

Go to http://www.nzmsa.org.nz/projects/global-health/ to find out about Global Health Groups in your area!

We are also proud to announce our brand new Global Health National Co-ordinator, Sam Bush. If you get lost about how to get involved, or just need more information, please contact him on global.health@nzmsa.org.nz

Official Call for Agenda Items for the NZMSA AGM – August 7th, 4pm.

michael — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 10:21:51 +0000

Hi all members,

Before our AGM every year we have to tell you about it (sorry if you’re not interested – it’s one of those legal things we have to do to be an incorporated society.)
Firstly this is an official call for Agenda Items. Next week we will email you the Agenda and the changes we are proposing to the constitution. The changes are pretty straight forward and for the most part just update the constitution to clarify certain points. Importantly, we are proposing to add a third rep in Dunedin. More about that next week.

We are hosting the AGM in Dunedin this year, so hopefully a few of you will be interested in coming along and hearing how we spent your money this year and what projects we’ve been up to. We will also announce the NZMSA award winners, and the President for 2011. It’s at 4pm, 7th of August, Venue TBC. If you want to RSVP, then you can do so on Facebook or by replying to president@nzmsa.org.nz

That’s all for now I am sure you all have study and assignments and ultimate frisbee games to catch up on!
Elizabeth Carr
President
New Zealand Medical Students’ Association

Coverage of Medical Student Debt issues in the Media

michael — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 14:03:04 +0000

The recent publication of research lead by Dr. William Perry (IPP of NZMSA) in the NZMJ has attracted significant media attention to the issue of medical student debt. Read about it here at:

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/3925735/Student-debt-drives-medical-graduates-overseas
http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/3930824/Medical-students-want-jobs-abroad

Dr. Perry’s article can be accessed via the NZMJ website

Applications for Conference Convenor Now Open

James — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 01:11:27 +0000

We are excited to announce that the NZMSA are now accepting applications for Conference Convenor (and team!) for 2011. Conference has grown in strength year to year, and we look forward to what next year has in store for us! So if you’re interested in making a bid for Conference 2011, please get in touch with our Secretary (secretary@nzmsa.org.nz) with expressions of interest, more information, and/or to submit your application.

Formal applications close on August 4 2010. The NZMSA executive will discuss these at our Annual General Meeting in Dunedin the weekend of August 7-8. If necessary we may approach you for a telephone interview or to clarify any parts of your application. Our selection will be made thereafter.

We are genuinely interested in new ways of approaching this event and how it is run. Please do make use of the consultation time to talk to us about your ideas or for more information about the commitment involved in running Conference11. This application process is an opportunity for you to put your thoughts on paper. We have deliberately not specified any format/requirements so that you are free to tell us what you think is important about you/your team and your proposed conference. However, areas of interest for us include what experiences you bring to the role of convener, whether you have an organising committee in mind (and what skills they have or you will need to find) and how you envisage the relationship with NZMSA/other interested students working. A vision or flavour for you event would also be helpful.

NZMSA are keen to ensure that prospective applicants have ‘informed consent’ about the commitment required to run the event. It is certainly a major undertaking that will demand a considerable amount of time and energy. We suggest that you seriously consider your academic, extracurricular and social commitments before applying to convene the event. You may also find it helpful to discuss your plans with your peers, partner, and university.

Best wishes with your decision-making and application planning. Running conference, although daunting, is an exceptional experience with unparalleled skill development and a chance to create an amazing event. We hope that you decide to apply and look forward to supporting you through the event. Please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Press Release: Debt pushing New Zealand doctors overseas

James — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 07:05:47 +0000

The New Zealand Medical Students’ Association is not surprised that increasing debt affects where students want to work in the future.

The NZMSA is calling for the government to develop a cohesive plan for the reduction of graduates’ debt and better support of young doctors.

“The level of debt faced by graduating medical students is alarming. New Zealanders should be concerned about the relative lack of support offered to young doctors to encourage them to work in New Zealand.” says Elizabeth Carr, President of the Students’ Association.

“With 89% of students now graduating with debt, it is unsurprising that a majority are considering the financial impact of the choices they make. Given that all graduates start work in the public health system, and most Kiwi doctors continue to work in the public health system throughout their career, the choices they make will ultimately have an impact on the retention of New Zealand trained doctors for New Zealanders.”

“Dr. Perry’s research revealed that 73% of students think that New Zealand is a good place to work and 95% think it is a good place to live – but it is notable that only 26% felt that they would be valued by hospital management and 25% believed they would be valued by the Government. This is a significant area of concern that needs addressing.”

“The New Zealand public should be reassured that New Zealand graduates are well trained and deliver a high quality service, but they should be asking District Health Boards and the Government to ensure we take care of these graduates and ensure that we have New Zealand trained doctors for New Zealanders.”

You can download a PDF of the press release here.

Dunedin takes out title of NZMSA Sports Exchange Champion 2010

James — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 05:39:58 +0000

The inaugural NZMSA Sports Exchange was held in Christchurch over the weekend of 9th and 10th of July 2010.

An estimated 200 medical students from Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin competed in rugby, soccer, netball and ultimate frisbee - as well as foosball, an eating competition and a debate.

Dunedin was crowned the Overall NZMSA Sports Exchange Champion 2010 after a fantastic effort all round, and our proud owners of the brand new shield – that is, until next year when it will be up for grabs again.

For full results, visit the Sports Exchange page. You can see a selection of photos from the event on our website here, and catch the rest on our Facebook page.

NZMSA wishes to thank sincerely thank MAS, NZMA and The Oxford Clinic for making this event possible. We also would like to thank the sports representatives from the regional students associations, and the Christchurch Social Representatives (Stephanie Savage, Jeca Bokwer, Sam Fowler and Jen Lyon) for putting the entire event together.