UIMSA Research Clinic, a programme organized by the UIMSA Secretariat Committee and scheduled to hold just once during the tenure held at FCR on Saturday, 19th September 2021. According to Miss Jaachimma Nwagbara, UIMSA General Secretary and Chairperson of the Committee, the program was designed to help medical students learn more about researching in specific Fields like Surgery, Internal Medicine and Obstetrics, and Gynecology and to foster mentorship relationships between Clinical students and Consultants who are researching areas that these students may be interested in.
The Programme was divided into three sessions – one session per consultant with Dr. Taiwo Lawal from the department of Surgery, Dr. Olukemi Adekanmbi from the department of Internal Medicine, and Dr. Imran Morhason-Bello from the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. The attendees registered before the programme and picked their session of interest.
The sessions were 45 minutes each with a 15 minutes break between each session. The consultants gave short presentations about research opportunities for medical students in their respective fields and students were allowed to ask questions after. The turnout was great and Jaachimma Nwagbara also mentioned that she was happy to see medical students interested in participating in research and hopes that the attendees get involved in researches that we can follow up on.
The session began with Dr. Lawal- the first speaker, elaborating on the reasons why research is conducted. He did a rundown of the different study designs using some of his published works as examples and also highlighting the uniqueness and strength of the different study designs.
He wrapped up his session by sharing a bit of his personal experience as a researcher.
Dr. Adekanbi the second speaker anchored a very insightful session as she highlighted the current hotspots in internal medicine, the uniqueness of internal medicine, and research opportunities in internal medicine. She talked about her experience with grant applications and grant writing and the need for a balanced team when forming a research group.
The session on research in Obstetrics and Gynaecology (OBGYN) taken by Dr. Imran Morhason-Bello was also very impactful as the others. Dr. Morhason-Bello highlighted the various research areas in Obstetrics and Gynaecology and also stated the peculiarities associated with the field. He concluded by saying that there are several opportunities in OBGYN research and students should have a clear understanding of their research idea while also identifying the peculiarities of their area of interest.
The speakers did not fail to mention the names of some consultants in the college who are active researchers and can be easily approached by students interested in research and who need mentoring. The organizers of the event hope this will be a stepping stone in improving the participation of students in the area of research.
