West Bank based medical students visit Dundee in knowledge exchange

‘Dundee is so beautiful, once you see that view – all the travel tiredness is gone’– the thoughts of Mona Awwad, one of fourteen students visiting our School of Medicine from the American Arab University (AAU) in Palestine’s West Bank.

At times it seemed this year’s summer school would be postponed. Geopolitical tensions made planning incredibly challenging and visa applications were markedly difficult to navigate. The lucky students greenlit for international travel endured many hours on all modes of transport, only six made it in time for week one – the rest arrived for week two.

‘We came from Palestine to Jordan, from Jordan to London, London to Edinburgh then up to Dundee!’, said summer school attendee Asil Yousaf Nasrallah. ‘Handling a Palestinian passport made things complicated. But it was worth it.”

This is the second year of the now annual programme. The summer knowledge exchange opportunity was struck following several years relationship building between the two universities and provides benefits for both institutions, improving teaching and learning.

The programme gives students of all backgrounds from the West Bank based University a fortnight to study in Dundee and gain valuable medical experiences. The course covers ethics, examination, communication, surgical skills and uses Dundee’s advanced simulation equipment to build confidence within clinical settings. 

Dr David Russell, Knowledge Exchange Lead, said, “We’re very lucky here at the University of Dundee to have world leading simulation facilities and what that means is we can train the students in a variety of situations in a safe environment using the expertise of our staff. 

“The biggest thing is to give them confidence. They are very knowledgeable students, their level of education is impressive, and we’re just taking that to the next level.” 

Much of the programme’s success relies on medicine school staff giving up their time to lead sessions. The visiting students are from a variety of places within the West Bank as well as Israel. Support also comes from the charity IMET2000, which supports medical training programmes within Palestine as well as other countries challenged by difficult circumstances, including Ukraine.

Visiting student, Asil, said, “I feel like I’m dreaming, I’m waiting for someone to wake me up – I just wish they could extend the course!

“My experience here in Dundee has been unique because of the technology and the updated resources that they follow.”

Throughout their visit the students have been enjoying the many sights and tourist hotspots of both Tayside and wider Scotland. They enjoyed a Sunday in Edinburgh soaking up the pre–Fringe Festival atmosphere. Meanwhile, bowling in Dundee took top spot amongst the groups’ more local adventures.