Preconference streams
The ICMDA 2008 Europe – Eurasia conference begins with 5 preconference streams which will run from the afternoon of Sunday 7th Sept to lunchtime Wednesday 10th Sept. These five streams will reflect how God’s values affect us:
- in our early years as medical and dental students and junior doctors - Student and Juniors Stream
- in one of the greatest medical challenges of our time - HIV AIDS Stream (part of the ICMDA HIV Initiative)
- in how we teach and what we teach others - Medical Education Stream (led by PRIME)
- in our relationships between colleagues and different professions in healthcare - Allied Health Professionals Stream (led by HCFI)
- in our daily practice - International Saline Solution Stream (led by IHS)
The Bible readings at the preconference will be given by Dr Andrzej Turkanik, director of Schloss Mittersill training centre in Austria.
1: Student and Juniors Stream
– Resources for Students and Junior Graduates
PLENARY ADDRESSES
“Limited Science – Unlimited God” (Dr Pablo Martinez, Spain)
“My limited perspective – Unlimited vision” (Dr Peter Saunders, UK)
“Limited possibilities – Resources unlimited” (Dr Ursula Fojtik, Germany)
Small group sessions will allow for in-depth review from our own perspectives as people at the beginning of their medical careers – intensive, practical and personally challenging. Besides thought-provoking lectures, it is the atmosphere of fellowship and one-on-one encounters, that makes this conference special.
About 39 specific seminars for medical and dental students and junior doctors will highlight certain issues of Christian medics faced in medical school or at the start of working life. A split session for "students" and "juniors" in separate groups will focus on "How to survive medical school" or "How to survive the junior years with your faith intact", respectively.
Fun and free time maximize the benefit of meeting young medics from distant countries. In this global network of Christians in medicine, we will discover resources that change our medicine and our lives in the long run! It is the outspoken hope that the students and juniors will stay on for the rest of the week – mutual benefit versus generation gap.
To find the seminar programme of the Students & Juniors Stream, please click here to open a pdf-file in a separate window.
This preconference stream is for medical and dental students and junior graduates (up to 5 years after graduation).
2: HIV AIDS Stream
- Resources for HIV AIDS
Part of the ICMDA HIV Initiative
The HIV pandemic is taking many forms across the Eurasia region - from a silent but growing threat in some nations to an established pandemic in others.
The aim of the HIV preconference stream is to bring together Christians working in HIV & AIDS care, prevention and treatment across the region in order to learn from one another, explore new models of practice, look at how we influence our own churches and faith communities to respond positively, and to strengthen networks of professionals working in the field.
To find the preliminary programme of the HIV AIDS Stream, please click here to open a pdf-file in a separate window.
This preconference stream is for all those Christian health professionals and others involved in responding to HIV & AIDS.
3: Medical Education Stream
- Resources for teaching others
Led by PRIME (Partnerships in International Medical Education)
WHO stated in 1998 that “the reductionist or mechanistic view of patients is no longer satisfactory. Patients and physicians have begun to realise the value of elements such as faith, hope, and compassion in the healing process”. But where is the curriculum that teaches these things? Where are those who can teach them if we Christians do not? We need to push back the tide of secularism that dominates medical training today and leads to many of the problems we face in practice. But how do we do it?
If we are to restore a view of the patient as a whole person, we need to resource ourselves with new concepts, evidence, materials and methods. This stream will allow us to explore and share these, based on the experiences we bring from the different situations in which we work. God is establishing a strong network of dedicated believers at all levels of medical and healthcare education. This time together will strengthen this, give new vision and provide resources to put compassion back to the heart of clinical care.
To find the full programme of the Medical Education Stream, please click here to open a pdf-file in a separate window.
This preconference stream is for those involved at any level of teaching others in our various professions.
4: Allied Health Professionals Stream
- Resources in Networking
Led by HCFI (Healthcare Christian Fellowship International)
Allied healthcare professionals who believe God wants to transform them, their workplace and their profession will interact extensively with others who share their vision, passion and burden. The program is geared towards action and interaction both on strategic and personal levels. Participants will explore how they can jointly optimize the impact they have on one another, their colleagues, their patients and their nation.
For the first time ICMDA in partnership with HCFI welcomes Allied Health Professionals across the region to attend this preconference.
This preconference stream is aimed at Allied Health Professionals student and graduate who seek to follow Jesus in healthcare. Doctors and dentists are also welcome!
To find the full program and more information on the Allied Health Professionals Stream, please click here to open a pdf-file in a separate window.
Notice:
If you or your national fellowship wants to sponsor allied health professionals from low income countries or if you need sponsorship to attend this stream, please contact: chris.steyn@xs4all.nl
5: International Saline Solution Stream
- Resources in everyday practice
Led by IHS (International Health Services)
As medical practitioners we are daily confronted with people who have been taken out of their common routines by their illnesses. If being a Christian is of any relevance, this will show especially in times of crisis. How can we let our faith speak in an adequate and helpful manner into the situation of our patients and their relatives in our everyday medical life?
“Saline Solution” wants to provide help to be a witness for Jesus even in a hectic practice or clinic. The concept was developed in our American sister movement and has by now been implemented successfully by other movements. Conversation will be promoted so that you can learn from each other’s experiences and see how the ideas can be applied practically in different languages and cultures.
Each person who longs to live out their Christian faith within their medical work is welcome to learn from this concept and to adapt it to their own situation.
This preconference stream is aimed at doctors and dentists. Allied Health Professionals are also welcome!
