Two hundred ten students from 70 universities in 14 countries will compete in the 2023 Inter-medical School Physiology Quiz (IMSPQ) on July 29-30 at UGM Faculty of Medicine, Public Health, and Nursing (FKKMK).
The steering committee of IMSPQ andrologist Dr. Dicky Moch. Rizal, MD, explained that IMSPQ is an olympiad among medical students worldwide that tests their knowledge in physiology.
This year, the UGM Faculty of Medicine, Public Health, and Nursing has been entrusted to host the event. Previously, the faculty hosted IMSPQ in 2016, with 83 teams participating from 5 continents.
This year’s olympiad is the 19th edition and the first to be held in person after the pandemic. Professor Cheng Hwee Ming, a professor of physiology from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, initiated the olympiad.
“The olympiad will test knowledge about the functions of the human body’s organs,” Dr. Rizal explained during a press conference on Monday (24/7).
The IMSPQ Committee Chair, Dr. R. Jajar Setiawan, MD, said that IMSPQ is participated by 70 delegations of around 210 students from 14 countries, accompanied by approximately 100-150 lecturers.
The countries represented in this olympiad include Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam, China, India, Japan, Romania, Qatar, and Australia.
The IMSPQ consists of a written test and an oral quiz. The written examination takes place on the first day, where participants are required to answer a set of 100 true-false questions.
The questions are designed to assess their understanding and concepts regarding various functions of the human body systems. Rankings are determined based on the team’s average scores.
The top 30 teams from the initial 70 will advance to the oral quiz on the second day. The 30 teams will be divided into six groups, each comprising five units.
The top 6 teams will proceed to the semifinal round, and the best three teams will compete in the final to vie for the champion title and the Professor A. Raman trophy, the first professor of physiology at the University of Malaya.
In addition to the olympiad, the event will include a seminar with keynote speaker Dr. Robert G. Carroll, MD, an expert in physiology from Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University, USA.
The 2023 event will also feature a cultural exhibition and cultural night showcasing arts and culture from the participating countries.
Dean of the faculty, Dr. Yodi Mahendradhata, MD, expressed that by hosting the IMSPQ, the faculty hopes to get more recognition and acknowledgment for its achievements on the international stage, especially in physiology.
Apart from academic purposes, it is hoped that cooperation and collaboration in basic medical sciences, especially physiology, and with the UGM Faculty of Medicine, Public Health, and Nursing can be established through this event.
“UGM has hosted this event twice, which shows the international community’s trust in UGM. We hope the olympiad will run smoothly and our team can achieve better results than in previous years,” Dr. Mahendradhata said.
Since 2008, the UGM Faculty of Medicine, Public Health, and Nursing have been sending delegates to participate in IMSPQ. In the 2012 IMSPQ, the UGM team ranked 8th; in 2013, individual participant Yosua Anthony Putra ranked 6th; and the team ranked 5th; and in 2014, individual participant Maria Fransisca Pudjohartono and the team ranked 4th.
“Our team has received intensive mentoring and coaching for the past two months. We hope they will make it to the top 3,” the dean added.
Author & photographer: Ika