Sara Busuttil
Sexual and Reproductive Health Officer Candidature 2016-2017
Dear MMSA Members,
I would like to contest for the post of Sexual and Reproductive Health Officer. This is my first time contesting for this post or for a post within the BD for that matter. The thought of running for SCORA officer first cropped up after attending the last IFMSA General Assembly August Meeting which was held in Macedonia. During the GA I had the opportunity to attend SCORA sessions. This gave me the opportunity to be exposed to SCORA on an international level. It filled me with motivation; motivation which I brought back with me to Malta aimed at involving myself within the standing committee as a coordinator as well as doing my best at improving our standing committee as officer. The latter can only be achieved through having an amazing team working hand in hand.
During this past year I have had the opportunity to work with SCORA team on two of its projects. I had the role of Mr and Mrs Breastestis coordinator as well as 50 Shades of Gender coordinator. For the former project my role was to coordinate with post-secondary schools, dates and times when we could go give peer educational session and build up a team of peer educators to give the sessions. I would not have been able to do such a satisfactory job without having been TNT certified, which I was able to get earlier this year. This has surely improved my leadership skills which I will definitely need as SCORA officer. Moreover, with 50 Shades of Gender campaign, I got the opportunity to create a campaign from scratch. This means that I had the opportunity to learn what it truly means to work behind the scenes within the MMSA and thus after coordinating such a project, which is still on going in its final stages, I feel like I am prepared for what being officer entails in relation to planning campaigns and events. I now know how demanding certain tasks can be and how to deal with certain issues that may arise. Having seen what other countries do in their standing committees and after coordinating two campaigns this year I have started to understand what we do in our standing committee, I am able to understand more what SCORA is all about; and I believe that I can lead this team with all the skills and knowledge that I have gained throughout the past year. Seeing how much SCORA has improved and managed to achieve in the past year only encourages me to work hard as the next NORA-elect in order to keep the standards high.
SCORA was the first standing committee which I was exposed to even before enrolling in the course. It is no wonder that I feel drawn to it. More so due to the issues it tackles which are of importance in our society, yet somehow sometimes they tend to not get the importance they need; either because they are too sensitive to tackle, or because they are deemed as being too controversial. I want to help in ensuring that such issues are not neglected. We have come a long way, but there is a longer way still to go. I am sure that with the help of my fellow MMSA members, SCORA can achieve even more successful results in the coming years. SCORA cannot function on its own. It is important that we liaise
with both other MMSA standing committees as well as other externals such as several other university organizations as well as governmental, non-governmental and private entities. My targets for this upcoming term are listed in my plan of action, which follows below. All in all, my aim is to keep up the already high standards of this standing committee and continue to move forward, not only with regards to sexual and reproductive health, but also with regards to the work done by the association in its entirety. Regards,
Sara Busuttil Email: sara@jbconsult.biz Mobile: 9984747
Plan of Action for SCORA 2016-2017
The SCORA Team
At present the SCORA team is set up based on how IFMSA has set up its own team. This means that just like IFMSA, our SCORA team is based on certain focus areas. This gives the team a certain basis to follow and work upon which I believe helps the team move forward as it provides a sense of structure. I plan on maintaining such a team as this past year the system seemed to have worked well.
The first member to join the team would be the secretary which is chosen sometime soon after the election. The rest of the team would be chosen after the June exams when the call for team members is sent out. Thus by the end of July I plan on having formed my team. This will be done anonymously in order to give a fair chance to everyone. I plan on forwarding all of the applications to an external who will code them for me and thus I will be able to read through and choose the best application without knowing who the applicant is. This ensures equality and fairness. Applicants will be chosen based on their past experience within SCORA team or SCORA project and event organisation, which will be considered a great asset especially for the role of the secretary, as well as according to their motivation and interest towards the project that they are applying for. Once the team is chosen I would like to dedicate a day in which all of the handover takes place. This requires the present SCORA team to meet up with the new SCORA team. During the meeting present coordinators will be asked to give a summary of what has happened to the project during the past year to the new coordinators. In addition, present coordinators would be asked to pass on any accounts, passwords and materials to the new coordinators. This ensures that the change in administration is done as smoothly as possible so that the work required for each project would not be affected. After the handover is done, the new coordinators will be updated with what their role will entail such as the coordination, organisation and feedback of the project. Part of their job will be to evaluate this year’s feedback and work on it during the year in order to improve upon what has been done and thus present better work. Any new projects will then be discussed.
SCORA Focus Areas After IFMSA amended the structure of SCORA, past NORAs deemed it important to change the setup of SCORA here in Malta as well. I agree with their decision as it gives SCORA more structure. Moreover, we would be able to learn from errors encountered within the IFMSA-SCORA and apply them to our standing committee. As mentioned previously, the SCORA team and projects for the upcoming year will be based on the IFMSA SCORA focus areas which our standing committee has taken up. The SCORA focus areas are as follows: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Comprehensive Sexual Education Maternal Health Sexuality and Gender Identity Gender Based Violence HIV and other STIs
Every project done during the upcoming year will fall under 1 or more of these 5 focus areas. In this way every focus areas will get to see improvements and innovations throughout the years both through ideas from our members as well as ideas brought from international gatherings such as EuRegMe and General Assemblies.
SCORA Projects ’16-‘17 1. Mr & Mrs Breastestis
This is an IFMSA project which has been happening in Malta for the past 4 years. Every year the event has been more successful than in the previous year. These sessions educate post-secondary students on reproductive neoplams which include Breast Cancer, Testicular Cancer, Prostate Cancer and Cervical Cancer. I had the opportunity to be the coordinator for this project for the past year and thus I know exactly what works for such peer educational sessions and what needs to be improved.
As much as possible sessions are given by at least 2 peer-educators who as much as possible are a male and a female. Since such a sensitive topic is being discussed and our audience tend to be intimidated by such topics, having someone of the same sex that they can relate to may help them to have a more enjoyable experience. Moreover, in order to present the best sessions possible, it is imperative to have an experienced peer-educator with an unexperienced one. This will create a learning curve which can be passed on throughout the years. It will also be handy during the sessions themselves as the experienced peer-educator would be able to help out the new peer-educator should the latter find any difficulty during the session. Finally, it is a good practice to ensure that at least 1 peer-educator out of a maximum of 4 peer-educators per session is Maltese. Post-secondary students need to feel understood on such topics and some students prefer to talk to someone who can understand their culture, as they are part of it, during the session. These are the points which I followed when coordinating this project during the past year and I plan on asking the new coordinator to follow such points as well as they proved effective. I propose that for the upcoming year more schools are targeted than those targeted this year. Moreover, people of different age groups than 16-18 years can be targeted by liaising with other standing committees in order to set outreaching events which would educate the public on these reproductive neoplams. 2. RUDI? (R U Doing It? Are You Being Safe?)
This is another peer education programme in which post-secondary students are taught on the issue of STIs. I aim to have the same points as those in Mr & Mrs Breastestis being implemented here as well. This year we managed to visit 6 different schools which through proper handover we would be able to revisit in the upcoming year as well as increase the number of schools targeted.
In order to tackle this issue in a more holistic way, I aim to implement the video that was produced this year on consent and coercion – Blurred Lines, in every session. In this way no material produced would be lost and the social issues related to sex would be tackled as well and not just the medical aspect. 3. WAD (World AIDS Day)
Despite the improvement that the past years have seen in relation to HIV, we still have a long way in educating people on HIV and AIDS which would ultimately decrease the stigma against HIV positive people. The Maltese society has much to learn on how to live with such a condition. Discrimination in Malta towards people with HIV is quite high. In order to tackle this problem at its roots, we need to educate the general public on prevention against HIV through the use of contraceptives such as condoms. I believe that only through education can one end discrimination. I would like that for the upcoming year there would be more education not only about HIV but also on how one can cope with the situation should it arise, even if not directly on oneself.
The prospective SCORA team will work hard to come up with the best possible means to deliver our message over to the general public. This will be done through events on campus, outreaching and candle vigil. A party may be also held should there be a demand for it. All of the previously mentioned events have been done this year. In addition I propose to include posters which provide facts on HIV transmission, statistics and life complications when people have AIDS amongst others to be distributed on social media. In this way our outreaching towards the public would be maximised as much as possible. 4. Sexual History Taking Workshop
This past year this workshop was done in order to teach clinical students the approach they should undertake with a patient when it comes to sexual history taking.
In the upcoming year I plan to hold such a workshop lead by professional doctors in the field. In addition to sexual history taking, I would like to collaborate with the NOME-elect, in order to make the workshop more inclusive. The workshop would include issues regarding people that form part of the LGBT+ community. As doctors we have the duty to make our patients feel at home even if the patient has a different sexual orientation than us, which we might not understand and thus it where education is needed. With the right skills and knowledge we would be able to approach all of our
patients in a professional manner such that they feel at ease with us which in turn would lead to a better check-up and a more accurate diagnosis. I believe that issues regarding urology and infectious diseases should also be included in such a workshop as they go hand in hand with sexual history taking, but are usually forgotten or misinterpreted. 5. 50 Shades of Gender
This is one of the projects that I have been coordinator for, for the past year. The project involved taking photos of influential Maltese people like Dr. Roberta Metsola, Dr. Miriam Dalli, Pierre Cordina, Edward Herrera and Ronald Briffa. A website will be set up in the coming days which includes information regarding LGBT+ as well as interviews with our guests. Moreover, poster of the photos that we have taken will be printed to be distributed around Malta and Gozo. If not enough money for such a nationwide campaign is raised this year, I aim to finish off with launching this project in the upcoming year. If the project is completed this year, I would like to dedicate a week to this project in which the photos taken would be redistributed on social media. I would like to liaise with the VPi-elect in order to daft a policy paper regarding the GIGESC law which would include issues related to the law, which MMSA as an association might have concerns about, and thus feel that the law should be amended. 6. Manifesting SCORA
As from the upcoming year I would like to branch off SCORA further than post-secondary schools. As Mr & Mrs Breastestis coordinator I can safely say that little and sometimes incorrect knowledge is given to our children regarding sexual and reproductive health. I would like to start a campaign where SCORA goes to extra-curricular groups such as religious groups, youth groups, Scout groups and the local councils to give sessions or peer educate the members regarding topics such as STDs, consent and coercion, gender identity and sexual and reproductive health in general. 7. HPV Awareness Research Programme
Here in Malta the HPV vaccine is being given to all female students at the age of around 12. I would like to conduct a research programme through which we can study the knowledge of such vaccine amongst the students and parents. Based on the data collected we can then evaluate whether
sessions regarding HPV are required among our students and possibly even their parents in order to provide them with the information necessary to put their mind at rest regarding the vaccine they would be taking. 8. SCORA Weekend
During this term ’15-’16, a peer education workshop was held. During this session several skills were given to those who showed interest in giving peer education sessions with SCORA. There was a high demand for this workshop which made the experience of being Mr & Mrs Breastestis coordinator so much easier as people applied for sessions without the need of a second call and most of them were trained for the sessions.
During my term I would like to expand this workshop onto a weekend. The aim of the weekend would be to discuss issues regarding sexual and reproductive health as well as pass on soft skills to the members attending in relation to the topics being discussed. Among the topics being discussed I would like to include matters on maternal health, which is one of the SCORA focus areas yet we do have projects on here in Malta; sexual and gender identity; STIs including HIV; and peer education. Specific topic which can be discussed during sessions include: -
Communicating bad news (in relation to sexual and reproductive health) Stigma and Discrimination (may include living testimony) Detection of STI Meet the expert Campaign preparation Advocacy (in relation to family planning) Maternal Health Clinic (possibly involving a simulation) Myths and Facts on Gender Identity Sexual and Reproductive Rights Peer education Sexual History Taking Contraception and Fertility Gender based Violence
9. SCORA X-Change
Should I be elected I would like to start planning out a SCORA exchange for Malta. As per stated in the X-change recommendations, the exchange would be a minimum of 3 weeks long. 2 weeks would be done in Malta and a week would be done in Gozo. All of the exchange would be held in English. Sessions would take place at least 4 times a week for at least 2 hours per day. For our first year we would aim to receive around 6-10 students (with a total maximum of 15 students if demand is high). The topics proposed to be included in the exchange fall under the 5 focus areas of SCORA. Topics that may be included are: -
STIs HIV Sexual and Reproductive Rights Sexual and Reproductive Health Sexual Education Maternal Health Sexuality and Gender Identity Gender Based Violence LGBT+ people Health and Issues Stigma and Discrimination Contraception and Fertility Family Planning GU Clinic Obstetrics Neonatal and Paediatric Care Urology Infectious Diseases
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Lectures: At the beginning of the week professionals in the field would be asked to give lectures on the topic that would be tackled clinically latter on during the week. Workshops: During such workshops participants would be asked to brainstorm and debate on the topic at hand. Meet the Expert: Professionals in the field or people that are involved in the said topic would be asked to give an informal session in order for the participants to understand the point of view of the patient.
The exchange would be divided into several teaching methods which include:
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Clinical Placements: Participants would be attached to a doctor (that works related to SCORA focus areas) either in MDH or in GGH so that they may experience what it is like working in such a field here in Malta. Feedback session: Towards the end of the exchange or once a topic has been fully discussed, some time would be dedicated to exchanging methods between countries so as for different countries to learn from each other.
As per usual, a social programme would be organised for the participants. For this project to be a success, I would collaborate with the PREO-Incomings-elect so that he or she may guide me further as to when is best to have the participants over during the year. Moreover the PREO-Incoming-elect may give me tips in relation to accommodation and social programme. 10. Collaboration
For all of these projects to be possible, SCORA would need to not only collaborate with other SC as previously discussed but also to collaborate with externals. Collaboration with other University Associations would make an event on campus much larger and thus have a larger impact. Collaboration with the government and other NGO entities would help to reach as much of the public as possible.
SCORA International Opportunities As can be seen from the projects that I aim to do during my term, I will strive to see that Malta is represented as much as possible in all international events. This may be done through the following events. 1. SCORA X-Change
Having the opportunity to organise such an event would mean that students from around the world would be able to come to Malta and learn about our sexual and reproductive health system and problems. We would be able to learn from them as we would ask for them to leave us feedback. This would help us greatly if we plan to organise a second exchange as well as encourage Maltese students to attend an exchange themselves as to date no one has ever been on a SCORA exchange. 2. SECSE
Such a meeting only takes place for SCORA members coming from countries found in Southern Europe. The main purpose of SECSE is for the exchange of peer education methods. Malta was the first host of SECSE and thus have contributed greatly towards this event. I aim to have 4 students attend SECSE per year so that our voice would not be lost and we would still be represented. 3. General Assemblies and European Regional Meetings
As an NMO, MMSA always sends a large delegation to represent it during these international gatherings. My aim would be to not only form part of the delegation, so that I can keep up to date with international SCORA related issues; but also to promote it between peers so that they too can form part of the delegation and attend SCORA sessions, should I be absent or cannot make it to a meeting.
Past Experience -
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Second Year
Mr & Mrs Breastestis Coordinator My role included coordinating with the schools to schedule a week in which MMSA would go to the school and give peer education sessions on reproductive neoplasms. This also involved issuing a call for participants to give the session as well as setting up a timetable and all of the resources to be used during the presentation.
50 Shades of Gender Coordinator This was a new project within SCORA, which I was able to coordinate and thus was able to truly understand what goes on behind the scenes in MMSA. The first part of the project was a photoshoot of Maltese influential people. In order to accomplish this part of the event I had to come up with a list of people to ask for their contribution. I wrote an official invitation letter for these guests which included the aims and objectives of the project. I then had to coordinate with the guests who accepted our invitation in order to find a suitable date to take the photos. Another part to the project was finding sponsors to pay for the raw material which we require in order to make our project happen – this part of the project is still going on to
date. Finally as the project was highly demanding, I was required to issue a call in order for a team to help me out in the project. Thus during this project I also got the opportunity to manage a team.
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Logistics Coordinator MM2016 OC Being part of the logistics OC meant a great amount of time organising data in order to plan out the 2 weeks in terms of transportation, materials to be given during sessions and rooms for SC sessions. I was the transport coordinator for the 3 days of arrivals and departures which taught me to plan ahead, think quick and learn to improvise greatly in order to produce the most efficient transportation system with the limited and sometimes incorrect data that I was provided with. Being part of the OC asked of me to work in a team and also lead it at times.
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Debate on Reproductive Rights I had the opportunity to represent MMSA, specifically SCORA, in a debate organised by jef Malta on reproductive rights which was held on campus.
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SCORA sessions during TRD
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TRD GA Simulation during TRD With the MM2016 fast approaching, I was approached by the VPe to help out in coordinating a GA simulation during TRD so that people who have never been to a GA before would be able to understand more its concept and thus be more willing to help out with crew.
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TNT I become a trainer which helped me greatly in all of my coordinator posts as well as in my everyday life.
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Training Sessions Being TNT certified I had the pleasure of giving a training session during TRD on Conflict Resolution which was my first, a training session during NPET Weekend on Feedback and a workshop on Social Inclusion during a Towards A Healthier Society conference.
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Attended Towards a Healthier Society conferences
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Helped out with SCORA stand during Science in the City
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World Diabetes Day Leader I had the opportunity to help out SCOPH during WDD by being a leader thus managing and teaching a group of first years when it comes to measuring blood pressure, blood glucose and BMI.
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Attended World Heart Day
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SCOME buddy for a day and year
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Participated in SCOME Fresher’s video
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Helped out in the Fresher’s Stand
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Gave STIs and Mr & Mrs Breastestis sessions
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First Year
IFMSA 64th General Assembly August Meeting 2015 Macedonia
I attended this GA last August and represented Malta in all of the SCORA sessions. I had the opportunity to present the workshop which was held previously on the new GIGESC law during Activities Fair.
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Gave RUDI sessions
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Attended MMSA Healthy Lifestyles Conference
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Attended First Aid Course
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Attended SCOME Medik-T
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Attended SCOME PMP Fibromyalgia Workshop
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Attended SCOPH Organ Donation Workshop
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Participated in World Aids Day FlashC-AID
I had the opportunity to be part of the extraordinary group of participants who performed a flash mob and candle vigil.
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Participated in World Diabetes Day
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Attended TRD
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Participated in Discover University
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Attended SCOME practice makes perfect
Final Comments I would like to thank all those who took the time to read through my motivational letter and plan of action.
I would also like to thank all those who have constantly supported me through all of my work with MMSA. I know that sometimes I can fall to pressure and it is only with the constant support and help that I receive from fellow MMSA members that I manage to keep on going with the result of such impeccable work that MMSA is known for. A special thanks goes to all those currently within the Board of Directors for their encouragement and help throughout the entire year as well as when I voiced my interest in running for this election.
If elected, I promise to work with determination, commitment and motivation within the BD as Sexual and Reproductive Health Officer. I would like to not only keep the very high standards that this SC already has but also to improve on it if possible. It is my aim to work hand in hand with all of the other BD members so as to make MMSA work as a whole and thus move forward as an association. This will only become a reality with a fair and just BD. Let us work together towards another prosperous year. Sincerely,
Sara Busuttil