MMSA VICE PRESIDENT FOR INTERNAL AFFAIRS CANDIDATE MOTIVATIONAL LETTER & PLAN OF ACTION

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1 Gerd Xuereb MMSA VICE PRESIDENT FOR INTERNAL AFFAIRS CANDIDATE MOTIVATIONAL LETTER & PLAN OF ACTION

2 Leadership THAT LISTENS

3 MOTIVATIONAL LETTER Dear fellow medical students, An organisation, no matter how well designed, is only as good as the people who live and work in it Dee Hock. It is my vision to see you all participate, in one way or another, in MMSA s operations and projects. The Malta Medical Students Association is already a strong organisation, nevertheless, should we all contribute it will continue to grow and we will all reap the rewards. Driven by this aspiration, it is my pleasure to run for the post of Vice President for Internal Affairs. I would like to offer my time and energy to further enhance the reputation of MMSA and be a catalyst for an increased student participation. My experience in the position of the Human Rights and Peace Officer will help me assume new responsibilities. The successful term in my previous role guarantees the delivery of my targets. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Thomas Gatt, the current Vice President for Internal Affairs, for his sterling services to the MMSA. My aim is to build on the solid foundations to further enhance the image of the organisation and to continue to expand its activities. The emphasis should always remain on the quality of the events rather than the quantity of events. I believe in a leadership that listens and acts to address the concerns and needs of our fellow students. Should you entrust me with this responsibility, I pledge my full commitment to the organisation. I will be honoured to be of service to you, my fellow medical students. Best regards, Gerd Xuereb

4 PLAN OF ACTION VISION, PASSION and INTEGRITY are the hallmarks of my plan of action. These shall be the three pillars which will guide me in my role of Vice President for Internal Affairs to seek to attain excellence. We students deserve the best and we must share a vision. We must be allowed to dream but then it is up to us to take concrete actions to transform our dreams into opportunities. I pledge my full commitment to the further development of our organisation. Passion in what we believe and in what we do as an organisation will be my driving force to explore new grounds and constantly encourage active student participation. Passion will lead us to our destination. I promise to decide and act at all times with integrity. I believe in honesty and strong moral principles and all of us must embrace ethical behaviour. Our actions must speak for our integrity.

5 My PROPOSALS

6 VISION TO ATTAIN EXCELLENCE - Enhancing Student Participation - Student participation is at the heart of the organisation s efforts. MMSA must make all students aware of the opportunities available and a strong effort is to be made to achieve wider student participation. It will be my priority to increase active membership in MMSA and to increase Alumni. MMSA will open windows of opportunities to students that will mark their years in Medical School and eventually in their profession as doctors. - Integrating International Medical Students - The successful integration of foreign medical students into the Standing Committee on Human Rights and Peace has left an imprint on the organisation. MMSA is an organisation that values diversity. My vision is to promote foreign students active participation through all the standing committees. Their contribution will enrich our organisation. - Engaging all Medical Students - Medical students must be informed of all the important and relevant MMSA and medical school initiatives. I plan to liaise with Class Representatives, the Medical Education Officer and the Projects Support Team to present regular in-class notifications. I believe that such promotion increases participation in MMSA events.

7 - Creating Synergies - The Malta Medical Students Association, although being made up of several Standing Committees and Offices, is one team sharing the same vision and values. Co-operation between all MMSA Standing Committees and Offices is the key to success where together we will strive to achieve the desired results. I will therefore promote liaisons between all MMSA Standing Committees and Offices. Together we are a stronger team. - The Admin Workshop - It was the admin workshop during my first year of studies that inspired me to become further involved in the MMSA. Following the great success of this year s Admin Workshop, a number of MMSA members became motivated to assume administrative roles in the MMSA. Having attended both workshops, I came to understand its relevance and importance. I will seek to organise the Admin Workshop earlier in the year so that more students will participate since a later date may hinder students attendance due to the close proximity of examinations. Moreover, in March 2016, the MMSA will be hosting the IFMSA General Assembly, an international medical student conference which requires a lot of preparation and manpower. The Admin Workshop will serve as a platform to motivate MMSA members to work for the realisation of this major event on the MMSA calendar. This will be done in liaison with the Organising Committee of the GA.

8 - Public Policy Committee - We, medical students, can be active agents of change. By taking a stand as an organisation we can make a positive difference in our society. My aim is to further improve the policy system of the MMSA to expand our policy work and to invite each member of our association to voice their opinion. The role of the Public Policy Committee will be to follow current affairs and prepare policy statements on behalf of the MMSA. Vision The Committee will be responsible to: Inform all MMSA members about our policy team and invite them to become promoters of change; Upon the selection of a topic for discussion for the draft of a policy paper, a focus group will be set up. Its responsibility is to gather the views of all medical students, to ensure that the policy paper represents the beliefs of the entire student body; The publication of the released policy statements, to inform the public on the views of our organisation. Policy papers issued by the MMSA will also be presented to the IFMSA. MALTA MEDICAL STUDENTS ASSOCIATION

9 - Reinforce the Feedback System - The current Feedback Coordinator and the newly elected Feedback Team will work together to address the feedback already collected. This partnership will continue until the commencement of the new term. 1. Prompt action must follow feedback. Create a Feedback Analysis Team that will be responsible for its classification and analysis. The Feedback Team will be empowered to undertake the necessary changes to address concerns and suggestions. Should the concerns require the intervention of the Executive Board, the Feedback Analysis Team will bring the students concerns to the Executive Board s attention; 2. Create focus groups where MMSA members will have the opportunity to discuss possible solutions for the problems and suggestions highlighted in the feedback; 3. Create space on the MMSA website and MMSA App where participants can leave easily leave their feedback after each MMSA event. The feedback will be valuable to evaluate the success of the activities and to decide which activities can be be retained, or modified and which activities are to be discontinued. - Managing MMSA s offices - Throughout the next term I would like to ensure that the MMSA's offices are kept organised. This will allow our members to focus on the quality of events and have minimal distractions. At the start of the next term I plan to: 1. Create an inventory for all the merchandise held at the office; 2. Determine the inventory items that are required; 3. Divide the KSU office into different sections, one for each Standing Committee. Each Standing Committee will be responsible for the designated area; 4. Issue a KSU Office Key for Standing Committee Heads and to other members on the Board of Directors;

10 PASSION IN WHAT WE DO - Celebrating our successes - The CONF report (Classification Board, Oﬃces in Students House, Notice Boards in Students House, Freshers Week Stands) is a reflection of the work carried out during the last term by each on-campus organisation at the University of Malta. My aim is for the MMSA to rank high in the report rankings. This will be achieved by highlighting the successes and achievements of our organisation in the CONF report.

11 - Valuing Experience - MMSA Alumni are among MMSA's most loyal and passionate supporters who can offer their invaluable skills and experience. Together with the Alumni coordinator, I will ensure that the MMSA Alumni are kept informed on MMSA events relevant to them and that the Alumni database is updated constantly. Moreover, I will strive to incentive Alumni to join the Alumni Division of the MMSA. - General Assembly Simulation - The Malta Medical Students Association is proud and honoured to host the 65th edition of the IFMSA General Assembly in March This achievement is the fruit of the handwork, determination and vision of the current medical student body. The IFMSA s General Assembly hopes to inspire medical students to become leaders through exchange of ideas and networking. Now it is up to us to make another success story. The Executive Board must prepare for the event and the Vice President for Internal Affairs will be responsible for the building of an efficient team. I will seek to motivate medical students to be part of this event asking them to contribute both in the preparatory stages and during the event. It is an opportunity to be of service but also a valuable experience that will enrich all participants. Together with the General Assembly Organising Committee I plan to organise a General Assembly Simulation. I propose to design workshops spread over various sessions undertaken at the same time. Groups of participants will move from one session to another to experience what happens during an IFMSA General Assembly. The sessions will include; Standing Committee sessions; Activities Fair; Exchanges Fair; Plenaries; Training sessions.

12 ORGANISATIONAL INTEGRITY - Reinforcing our Competences - A process of evaluation of MMSA s activities and behaviours will be undertaken to determine the core values of our organisation. Once we establish the core ideology of MMSA, all courses of action will be guided by the organisation s purpose, values and vision. It is only through the proper understanding of Who we are and Where we want to be that projects that add value to the organisation can be selected. MMSA will continue to increase its commitment to be selective to ensure that quality rather than quantity will be its flagship. Therefore, the Executive Board elect will be responsible for the following courses of action: 1. Identify the core values, purpose and vision of MMSA; 2. Act to preserve its core values; 3. Stimulate progress and encourage innovation and creativity; 4. Encourage students participation in MMSA projects and campaigns; 5. Communicate the above via the various MMSA initiatives.

13 - The Project Support Team - This year I plan to establish a Project Support Team. The Project Support Team, constructed from three members, must ensure that only quality projects are undertaken and that standards are maintained at all times. The Project Coordinator will be responsible to ensure that the quality of the projects undertaken is maintained throughout the term The Project Support Person will be responsible to provide support to the Standing Committee heads and coordinators in the running of events The Project Promoter will be responsible to promote all events in collaboration with the Vice President for Internal Affairs and the class representatives.

14 - Emphasising Quality over Quantity - I have drafted a Project Application Form which I will present to the Executive Board elect. Once approved by the EB, it will become standard procedure for the Head of the Standing Committee to submit an application form proposal for each potential project. The application form will require the following information: Aim, Objectives and Priorities of Project; Target groups; Description of activities and events; Dissemination strategies; Results expected. Vision The Projects Support Team and the Vice President for Passion Internal Affairs will review the integrity projects submitted and rank them using the criteria listed above. The best projects will be recommended to the Executive Board who will then select the projects to be undertaken.

15 Vision Passion integrity Previous EXPERIENCE

16 PREVIOUSEXPERIENCE I currently serve as the National Officer on Human Rights and Peace (NORP) within the MMSA Board of Directors. Part of my contribution towards SCORP was the development of a new project - Amigo. This project aims to promote and facilitate volunteering amongst medical students. Other events which where organised under SCORP for the first time this year are SCORP Weekend, the Discover Malta Treasure Hunt, and a number of interactive workshops promoting Human Rights and Peace in Malta. These events helped the Standing Committee to attract freshers and passive MMSA members to become more active within our association. During my term as the NORP I have introduced voluntary opportunities overseas specifically for Medical Students. Our first experience was this summer where a group of ten Maltese medical students participated in Go SCORP Romania. Go SCORP is an IFMSA project which targets the promotion of SCORP values by engaging in voluntary work. This was a great opportunity for Maltese medical students to promote the MMSA with international medical students. Moreover, this gave the MMSA the opportunity for new collaborations with foreign NMOs. Other similar experiences are currently being planned. I have attended the 64th edition of the IFMSA General Assembly in Turkey and will be heading the Maltese delegation for EuRegMe 2015 in Denmark. During the first two years of my studies I have participated in various events and seminars organised by the several standing committees of the MMSA. These include Reaching the Outreacher Seminar, World Diabetes Day, World Aids Day and Internationals Women s Day. I attended two Training & Resource Development Weekends, Medik T, and the Training New Trainers (TNT) weekend. I also took part in a number of workshops including The Admin Workshop, SCOME Practice makes Perfect workshops and the SCORP-SCOPET Workshop. Furthermore, I have organised and coordinated the first edition of SCORP Weekend. My participation in these events has helped me gain a comprehensive insight of MMSA and its operations. During the past term I also assumed the position of the MMSA Goes Local Coordinator, coordinating a total of 7 events including KSU Health Days. MMSA Goes Local is a project where medical students are given the opportunity to perform BMI and blood tests on the general public aiming at promoting preventive medicine. Moreover, I also formed part of the Organising Committee of the 2014 MMSA Healthfest.

17 VISION PASSION INTEGRITY

18 MALTA MEDICAL STUDENTS ASSOCIATION