COMMUNITY BASED MEDICAL LEARNING PROGRAMME 2015
Community Based Medical Learning (CBML) programme of the Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Sri Jayewardenepura focuses on student training in a rural setting to empower the medical graduates to work in these underprivileged areas with minimal resources and to provide quality health care to the rural communities. It is also aimed at developing a favourable attitude among students on patient care, social justice, ethics, cultural, and social harmony and gender equity. It will also provide the opportunity for students to learn rural health care provision (primary care setup), the life style of people, their practices and their limited social and financial resources and the lack of basic amenities.
CBML programme for the year 2015 was held as one week residential programme in Kalutara district from 19th to 26th July.
COMMUNITY BASED MEDICAL LEARNING PROGRAMME 2012
One of the Institutional objectives of the FMS USJP is to train a graduate to work in a primary care setting. Many inputs are made into the curriculum to achieve this. This year the Community Based Medical Learning programme (CBML) focused on supervised exposures to state primary care facilities with self directed learning and reflective writing. A day out for the students with the villagers in the study area was also introduced, where the students, community leaders, members of the community and the teachers were involved in the teaching learning process. A structured programme was carried out with the help of many faculty members under the purview of a Chairperson, Coordinator/Secretary and a dedicated committee from hospital clinical, community and family medicine departments.
The project was funded by the University. The students were given residential facilities at the Sarvodaya Training centre and retreat situated in Bandaragama from the 2nd to the 9th of September. They visited the selected institutions everyday and carried out the activities listed in the log book. There were debriefing sessions at night and presentations by the students. As the team work is an important component in managing medical practices/institutions, a session on team work activities was carried out on the last day in the grounds. A session on values and spiritual aspects in caring for the sick was also done by Dr. AT Ariyaratne Founder of Sarvodaya movement.
As the university is funding this learning experience to be residential for the students, we decided to make use of this opportunity to train the students in dining and social etiquette as a dining room to accommodate many students was available and food provided for the students.
