Benjamin Koroma - Candidature For President, EB 2022/23

“I

start with the premise that the function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not

Abbreviations 1

COMAHS:

SLEMSA:

IFMSA:

NMO: SCOPH:

NPO:

SCORE:

NGA: SC:

HFS:

HoFOSA:

SRC:

CWG:

AHS:

TECT:

UNICEF:

LPS:

POA:

OLM:

EB: TO:

CB:

ARM:

MSHCV:

UNIMAK:

CHC:

TNT:

VPE:

VPCB:

VPI:

WCC:

College of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences

Sierra Leone Medical Students' Association

International Federation of Medical Students' Associations

National Member Organization

Standing Committee of Public Health

National Public Health Officer

Standing Committee on Research Exchange

National General Assembly

Standing Committee

Holy Family Schools

Holy Family Old Students' Association

Students' Representative Council

Constitution Working Group

Adventist Health System

The Evangelical College of Theology

United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund

La Plage Services

Plan of Action

Online Meeting

Executive Board

Team of Official Capacity Building

Africa Regional Meeting

Medical Students' Holiday Clinic Visitation

University of Makeni

Community Health Center

Training New Trainers

Vice-President for External Affairs

Vice-President for Capacity Building

Vice-President For Internal Affairs

White Coat Ceremony

MotivationLetter 2

I am much obliged to you for giving me the honour to serve you in the capacity of Vice President for the 2021/2022 Executive term. Years ago in Premedicals, I would not have imagined writing this letter. John F. Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States, once stated that “Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.” Yes, they are! As Vice President, I have not only worked on my plan of action but also discovered a lot more for the continual growth of our association. “Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning.” These are inspiring words from Benjamin Franklin, the Founding Father of the United States. For the past years, we have been proud of the successes we have achieved so far, especially in the International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations (IFMSA). In the presence of all these achievements, we still have a lot to work on internally. I believe if we address the internal issues still living with us, we will set the stage for bigger achievements both internally and externally. This is why I am filing this candidature for the highest position in our NMO, the SLEMSA Presidency!

I am Benjamin Koroma, a fifth-year medical student. It all started in Premedicals when some senior colleagues paid our class a visit and brought to our knowledge this wonderful platform called SLEMSA. Since then, despite all the hassles that come with being a medical student, I have in various capacities, worked for the Association. Besides working for the Association as Vice President, I have also worked in different capacities among which are: Director of Registration for the 6th NGA in 2021, General Assistant of SCOPH (2020/2021 financial year), and Director of Technology for the Medical Festival 2022 (MedFest’22). I have made tremendous achievements in all these tasks. When I was the General Assistant of SCOPH, I made sure to work closely with my NPO to work on all of the SC's plans. The SC did extremely well and we ended the term to be one of the most successful SC for that financial year. Also as a Vice President, I have worked on my plan of action. In partnership with SCOME, I have for the first time in our association’s history introduced the Medical Students’ Holiday Clinic Visitation (MSHCV) Programme.

The MSHCV Programme is a clinical rotation programme aimed at providing a platform for us to acquire more clinical knowledge and skills during our holidays. Last year (2022), it was a massive success.

In addition to working on my plans, I ensured to be a hard-working and positive-minded team player to the rest of the other EB members. So far, the SLEMSA journey has been worthwhile.

One of the things I have learned during these years is that we need to keep thinking of innovating better ways of handling matters in our association. It is very clear that innovation is still struggling for a place in our association. “It is always safe to assume, not that the old way is wrong, but that there may be a better way.” words from Dr. Henry Harrower, a controversial early figure in endocrinology and the impetus for the foundation of the Association for the study of Internal Secretions (now called The Endocrine Society). These words are significant for the growth of our association. If always our target is only to organize our traditional events exactly the way they have always been, we will always have the same old situations with us. It is upon us to bring new ideas to life. I am not saying we should stop our traditional events. However, we should get them done in a different fashion.

Another area we should consider innovation is our Finances. I believe we should create ways to have sustainable income. We have always been seeking for funds to fund our activities. What if we seek the same funds to help address one of the daily issues the majority of our members face? That is the issue of our daily transportation to and from our different campuses . We can address this by securing a SLEMSA bus. In addition to solving transportation issues, the SLEMSA bus will also serve as an innovative method of fundraising for the Association.

Constructive continuity has not been a usual practice. An example of the benefit of continuity is the success of hosting the best Africa Regional Meeting (ARM 2022) here in Freetown. This will always be a very important

reference to look back on. Implementing constructive continuity in our internal affairs will definitely make a huge contribution to our association’s development. I am here to magnify continuity!

Besides all these, there is a very important need to provide our freshmen and new members with adequate knowledge about the Association and the Federation. This will serve as a foundation to build their capacities. Building our members' capacities will help in sustaining our successes. I believe this is the most important aspect we should continually work on in our association. It is from this poll of members that leaders for this association will emerge in subsequent years. “Without the right succession planning put to play in human resources, we build for the future without a future”. Again I say, capacity building is a major aspect that should be consistently worked on

With all these highlighted things, I want to say that I am more ready than ever before to take our NMO to another level. I am confident in my observations and ideas to improve the work and leadership of our association. I am ready to take our presence and our impact to a higher level. I am here to make those

SLEMSians that feel different, shy, and afraid to dream, feel empowered enough to express their voices and stand up for what they believe in To achieve our beloved SLEMSA’s vision and mission, to unlock our potential, and to reach newer heights.

Let us bring the dream of "Another approach beyond the usual old with MORE!" to life by making me your next President. I trust your decision.

Sincerely

Benjamin Koroma

PlanOfAction 3

We We are taking are taking a step beyond a step beyond the old usual with the old usual with MORE! MORE!

THE DREAM: THE DREAM:

R ESOURCEFUL INVESTMENT

ThiscandidaturecontainsmyvisionandideasforSLEMSA.It wasdraftedconsideringtheSLEMSAConstitutionandBylaws, andmyownexperienceasaSLEMSian.

There are ideas past EBs have already introduced but are often not continued to be worked on when another executive takes the leadership stage. My executive will be different. I will make sure our executive continues to work on these beautiful ideas that are of importance to the Association. You will see continuity throughout POA Highlighted below are ideas of major benefits for the Association :

1. MSHCV Programme: Introduced in 2022, the MSHCV Programme was a platform for us to have access to different health facilities in the country to acquire clinical skills during our holidays. I will ensure this programme continues in a bigger form by creating more space for more participants to benefit. With great hope, the district government hospitals/CHCs will be included in the list of centers for the next holiday. This means any SLEMSian visiting his/her district during the holidays will have access to the health facilities there

2. Go Green: Introduced in 2021, the idea is taking us to the modern way of life which I believe is needful for us as young minds. To continue with this, the website will be

improved and up to date for all of to use. The website will be an all-in-one platform for all SLEMSA registrations to be done, the recently launched online library to be accessed, notices to be posted and any information about the Association will be available there.

3 Capacity Building: This, if not the most important, should be one of the most important aspects to consider greatly every executive term. My executive will first work on equipping the general membership with the required knowledge about the Association and Federation by organizing exciting workshops I will call "Know SLEMSA and IFMSA" . The name says it all as these workshops will serve the purpose of bridging the gap of knowledge about both the Association and Federation. Another approach is by increasing the participation of SLEMSians at TNT sessions will help more SLEMSians become IFMSA trainers. These trainers will in turn train other SLEMSians and this will help build the capacities of more SLEMSians. In addition to all highlighted above, over SCs CB activities will be fully supported as well. In addition to all these, I make sure to create the office of the Vice President for Capacity Building (VPCB) to work on all the plans set for CB.

4. Provision of Human Skeleton and Cadaver Dissection: This was the 2022 project that won the Dr Willoughby Award I believe the Association should continue to give a helping hand on this for its sustainability. That is exactly what my executive will do because this is very important for the appreciation of

Charity begins at home they always say. Our home here is SLEMSA-Sierra Leone! It is about time we started to organize the general house, the executive board, other TOs, and our events in a more proper order.

1 The General House: The General House is composed of all the members of the Association. It is the highest authority and decision-making body of the association. (SLEMSA Constitution 7.1). It is, for this reason, I deliberately start by addressing matters relating to the general membership. The dedication, passion, and hard work put in by members are what have made this Association what it is. That is what makes us as members the center the Association and of my candidature. It is very important to make available a longlasting database of all members. This will help the EB and the rest of the TOs to know about their members and how to work on their engagement. Each and every member will be registered at the start of the term for this data to be available. Each and every member will be considered of great importance hence, equal opportunities will be made available to all of us according to the set criteria for those opportunities. Everyone will have a place in SLEMSA No one will be left behind. A reecho of the Radical Inclusion dream.

To achieve this, the general house meetings (which I plan for us to have at least quarterly) will provide a platform for members to voice out their thoughts.

2. The Executive: For every EB member to achieve their plans, a successful, well-organized, and proper handing-over will be done All EB members' work is well supervised in a flexible manner. A friendly working environment will be created for the EB. There will be routine EB meetings with productive outcomes. The mental health of every EB member will be greatly considered.

Vice President:

Support this office by assigning some responsibilities of my office to him/her

Work with him/her to bring new members on board.

Secretary General: In addition to his/her constitutional role,

Work with this office to make sure our association has well organized PowerPoint, certificates, and ID card templates which will be unique for every TO to use when necessary. Assist him or to review the constitution and bylaws.

Work with him/her to produce ID cards for every fully paid up SLEMSian.

Treasurer:

Assist him/her to create a budget for the entire term. Assist him/her to create a database of sponsors (with their contacts) not only for the use of our EB term but also for the use of subsequent EBs. Work with him/her to ensure credible bookkeeping. Work with him/her to provide merchandise of interest to members.

Public Relations Officer:

As the face of the association, I will work with him/her to produce quality content.

Work with him/her to introduce short videos to send out notices or any message to our handles.

3. The Standing Committees: The SCs are the pillars of the Association. Therefore,

they require as maximum support as possible.

Make sure all SCs National Officers work with the VPCB to focus on the IFMSA Regional and Global priorities.

At the beginning of the term, a training session will be conducted for SCs National Officers to be more knowledgeable about their respective SCs This in turn will help the general membership get more knowledge of their respective SCs.

SCs National Officers are to submit a quarterly work plan and report. Include all SCs' annual budgets in the Association's annual budget. Fundraising Assistants for each SC to work with the treasurer on their finances.

To increase the participation of members in SC activities, end-of-term awards will be given to "The SLEMSians of the Term".

Conduct training for them to understand the basic structure of the Association so they can relay the correct information to members in their respective classes.

Teach them about and give them access to the dues payment spreadsheet so they keep it updated on a regular basis

Ensure a cordial working relationship between them and their respective TOs so they can properly learn about those offices. This will help prepare them for those offices in offices.

This event is very significant to us because it can help motivate new members to participate in our activities.

For the first time, the location of organizing this event will be changed. New ideas will be brought in to make the event more exciting.

4. Class Ambassadors:

5. TOs Assistants:

6. WCC and Medical Symposium:

11.2.5. of the SLEMSA Bylaws says that: "The budget shall include:

a. Income from: I. Membership fees. II. Interest and other income.

b. Expenses for: I. Administration. II. Communication. III. Printing. IV. Executive. V. Other expenses. " For this reason, we can bring in innovative ways of solving members' daily challenges Below, I highlighted things that will be looked into if elected.

1. The Dream for A SLEMSA Bus: It is no secret that transportation is a big issue in the capital of our nation. Securing a SLEMSA bus can be a way of buffering that issue. This project might not be accomplished during my tenure as President if elected but can at least be started. If we are also capable to seek funds to organize ARM 2022, we can seek funds to secure a bus for the benefit of our members. Further steps on achieving this will be discussed in the EB.

2. The Dr. Willoughby Award: This has the potential to bring bigger projects to life if we work on the challenge brought up by members who have won this award before. The main challenge all of them are bringing up is a set price of the award. I will make sure to work closely with the rest of the EB to address this challenge to the potential

of subsequent projects.

3. SLEMSA Outing, Hiking, and Picnic:

To relax our minds, I plan to form an OCs to organize these events for us all. I consider all these events to accommodate everyone's liking.

1. The Vice President of External Affairs:

To work on our external affairs, I plan to work with our EB to establish the office of the VPE. All the tasks of the office will be stated in the reviewed constitution.

2. Increase Our Representation at IFMSA Meetings: it.

Plan to establish the TAFs for members who are financially challenged. Seek additional funds to cover expenses needed that the TAF cannot cover.

Giving the chance to those who have not yet had the experience to have

3. Sharing of IFMSA Email Servers and Opportunities to the General Membership:

All IFMSA email servers will be shared with the general membership and educate them on how to access them. This will bring the IFMSA opportunities to the doorstep of members.

4. Other Student Organization: Establish fruitful partnerships with these organizations

4 CurriculumVitae

ABOUT ME

A responsible person of best practice who is well organized and detailed in handling issues. An highly approachable and positive person with great relationship building abilities just as the capacity to lead, settle on basic choices and work to save time.

CONTACT

+23276395347

benjaminkoroma@gmail.com

Benjamin Koroma

LANGUANGE

BENJAMIN BENJAMIN BENJAMIN KOROMA KOROMA KOROMA

M E D I C A L S T U D E N T

EDUCATION

Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBChB)

College of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences, University of Sierra Leone

2017-Present

West Africa Senior School Certificate

Examination (WASSCE) Result

Holy Family Senior Secondary School

2012-2016

Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) Result

Holy Family Junior Secondary School 2009-2012

National Primary School Examination (NPSE) Result

Olivet Baptist Primary School

2003-2009

IFMSA EXPERIENCE

Presidents' Session and NMO Management Session (Head Of Delegation)

Africa Regional Meeting 2022

SCOPH Session (General Delegate)

March Meeting 2022 | Online

SCOPH Session (General Delegate)

Microsoft Office Suits

Google Suits

Creative Design

Project Management

August Meeting 2021 | Online

Africa WAKANDA Fest (External Affairs)

September 2021 | Online

SCORE Pre-NA Workshop

August 2020 | Online

Benjamin Koroma (Benjo Kay)

BenjoKay BenjoKay

+23276395347

benjaminkoroma@gmail.com

Benjamin Koroma

Benjamin Koroma (Benjo

NJAMIN NJAMIN NJAMIN ROMA ROMA ROMA

ce President

21/2022 Executive Term

EMSA MSHCV Programme AHS aterloo Hospital

22

rector of Technology Medical stival

22

neral Assistant, Standing Committee on Public Health (SCOPH)

2020/2021 Financial Year

Director of Registration 6th National General Assembly

2021

SCOPH-UNIMAK Partnership Public Lecture at UNIMAK

2020

OTHER EXPERIENCE

Secretary General Kidney Savers' Foundation (KSF)

December 2021 - Present

Secretary General HoFOSA COMAHS

2019 - Present

Microsoft Office Suits

Google Suits

Creative Design

Project Management

Deputy Minister of Legal Affairs SRC

COMAHS

2019 - 2020

Secretary General CWG SRC COMAHS

2019 - 2020

Senior Prefect Holy Family Schools

2016

Kay)

work to save time.

CONTACT

+23276395347

benjaminkoroma@gmail.com

Benjamin Koroma

Benjamin

LANGUANGE

NJAMIN NJAMIN NJAMIN ROMA ROMA ROMA

OTHER EXPERIENCE

Microsoft Office Suits

Google Suits

Creative Design

Project Management

esident Holy Family Computer

ociety 016

olunteer at TECT Clinic Jui

ec 2018 and Nov - Dec 2021

AWARD

18th ARM Certificate 2022

Introduction to Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)

UNICEF Online Course 2020

MSHCV Programme Certificate 2022

Introduction to Social Media

La Plage Services Online Course 2020

Informatics and Computer Basics

Holy Family Senior School | 2016

REFERENCE

esident Holy Family Speculum News ess 016 On

HOBBIES

Koroma (Benjo Kay)

Krio English

"A good objective of leadership is to help those who are doing poorly to do well and to help those who are doing well to do even better"