Medical students are a stressed lot especially when confronted with high-stake Phase examinations, which they are required to pass to proceed to the next phase of their studies. The College of Medicine realized the importance of organizing events to not only relieve their stress but also informative. One such event “Let’s Talk…” was conducted on May 26, 2022 on ‘Rapport-building Techniques’ for the benefit of III MBBS students, who are due for the Phase II examinations in June, which had a mix of facts and fun.
The resource person was Mr. Sanu Dharman, a certified Neurolinguistics Programming (NLP) Practitioner and Soft Skills Trainer. He enthralled the students with his talk on reprogramming the mind. He introduced the students to rapport-building techniques such as making the importance of first impression, appreciating and thanking, remembering names, finding out similarities and mirroring.
The students were energized with the activities that were conducted and it was a break from their usual academic activities. The session ended with a group game which created an atmosphere of fun and laughter relieving stress and anxiety among the students.
“The ‘Let’s talk’ session was a fun activity to participate given our recent hectic schedule. It provided us with momentary relief and a chance to reorganize our thoughts on the challenges we are currently facing. I appreciate the opportunity to unwind and interact with my fellow peers, while getting useful advice”, said Momina Khawaja, Class Representative of III MBBS. Her colleague, Abdulla Abdulraoof Alsayed Mohamed Sharaf echoing a similar sentiment said, “We had an amazing activity which I think was something we all needed because we have our Phase exam soon, and the speech that was given by the speaker made us more confident. Personally, I enjoyed the speech so much and I wish these activities can be done from time to time to bring our motivation back and make us remember our purpose as future Doctors”.
Applauding the participation of the students during the session, Dr. Janita Pinto, Assistant Professor of Microbiology and Phase II Coordinator, said, “It was great to see the students enjoying themselves during the session and am sure that they will apply the techniques that they learnt in practice”.
Expressing satisfaction with the outcome of the activity, Dr. Radhika Taroor, Associate Professor in Behavioral Sciences & Student Counselor said, “Happiness lies within us in the way we think and our ability to handle things. We give a lot of importance to the mental well-being of all our students”.
Happy with the positive feedback received for the event, Dean Prof. Manda Venkatramana congratulated the faculty for organizing event like these which goes a long way to relieve stress among medical students and safeguards mental health.
College of Medicine has established the ‘Student Happiness Center’, a student support service aiming at enhancing student’s overall well-being including their mental health. Members of SHC CoM include both faculty and student representatives from different programs. SHC will provide students with information, advice, guidance, or referral regarding any concerns or complaints in a timely manner. They will also serve as a liaison between students and different college/university departments.