MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR

Ala’a Rawashdeh

Vice President for International Affairs (VPIA)

“I think one of the keys to leadership is recognizing that everybody has gifts and talents. A good leader will learn how to harness those gifts toward the same goal.”

Allow me to begin this letter by introducing myself to you. My name is Ala'a Mohammad Rawashdeh, a passionate IFMSAian, a public health activist, IFMSA-Jo’s NMO president for the term of 20/21.

From my early childhood, I have always craved the opportunity to give my best in the service of humanity. Voluntary work has always been a part of my life in some form or another, and that explains why I chose medicine as a study, because what is more humanitarian than medicine?

Establishing myself well within my NMO gave me the confidence I needed to run for my local committee elections and serve as a Local Public Health Officer 2018/19. It was never in my nature to settle, so during that year I was accepted to be the program coordinator for the NCDs program in IFMSA-Jo, and while staying on top of my work, I decided to delve deeper into the world of IFMSA, and attend my first EMR regional meeting in Oman. I was left in awe after seeing what IFMSA is like beyond the borders of my NMO. After that, I ran for IFMSA-Jo elections to be National Public Health Officer 2019/2020.

In that term, I decided to dive more into IFMSA internationally; so I was a participant in many IFMSA meetings and opportunities and a SWG member in many SWGs in IFMSA, and after all of this, I applied for IFMSAJo elections to be IFMSA-Jo VPIA “NMO president” for the term 20/21.

Ala’a Rawashdeh

Vice President for International Affairs (VPIA)

The various positions I held so far allowed me to perfect the skills I previously acquired; like time management, problem-solving and communication skills. It also gave me the chance to learn new ones, the most important ones being teamwork and coordination. Working in positions for three consecutive years taught me a lot of things, the most important lesson I learned is that in order for you to be a good team player, you have to be honest with your teammates, look out for them when you know they are having a hard time, and most importantly, be willing to adapt. Learning all of that allowed me to grow with every position I held and become wiser with every decision I made.

So, what is my role as IFMSA-Jo VPIA? I am the one who is responsible for contacting other NMOs and IFMSA TO! My goal is to achieve the vision of IFMSA-Jordan as one of the strongest NMOs in the world by increasing our members' engagement in international work.