As many as 25 international students majoring in health sciences have done a community service in eight community health centres in Kulon Progo regency during the International Summer Course 2017, organised by Faculty of Medicine Universitas Gadjah Mada.
The students are from universities in Malaysia, Germany, Thailand, and Netherlands. Doing services along with them were 34 UGM students from Faculties of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmacy in the summer course themed Interprofesional Healthcare: Tropical, Neglected Infectious and Sexually Transmitted Disease.
For one week, the 59 students worked together and lived among local community in Kalibawang, Samigaluh, Panjatan, Pengasih 1, Pengasih 2, Girimulyo 1, Girimulyo 2, and Nanggulan sub-districts. This was part of the international summer course 2017 offered by Faculty of Medicine UGM from 30 October - 17 November 2017.
Drs. Abdul Wahab, MPH., field coordinator, said the students would give health services in the community health centres, give counselling on nutrition, as well as health screening in schools.
“The students can learn directly health services in society and give solution to existing health problems that are found there,” he told journalists during a field visit to Pengasih, Kulon Progo, on Tuesday (7/11).
Wahab said Kulon Progo had been selected to be the place for the summer course since 2016 due to its good health service system that produced a number of innovations.
Head of Kulon Progo Health Office, dr. Bambang Haryatno, M.Kes., welcomed positively the programme from UGM. He hoped the field practices would serve as the media for the students to learn and gain experience in giving health services to society.
“We hope this programme would sustain and drive the achievement of the mission of Kulon Progo as a healthy, independent, and prosperours regency,” he said.
Kader Muhammad bin Kader, a Malaysian student, expressed he earned plenty of experiences from this programme, especially on health treatment in the rural areas.
“By joining this programme I could learn health services in the society with a different culture, this is a worthwhile experience,” said the Pharmacy student from Cyberjaya University College of Medical Science.
Previously, Vice-Dean of the Faculty, dr. Gandes Retno Rahayu, M.Med.Ed., Ph.D., said the international summer course had commenced in 2016. But this year they collaborate with Faculty of Dentistry and Faculty of Pharmacy to improve the health education and services. Through this programme, the sudents are expected to work together in giving health services, to share knowledge and gain experience directly on the sciences they had learned at respective universities.