Member’s Articles

Member’s Article

Photo by CIMSA YARSI

SCORE Hosting Incoming : Restore Something That Has Been Lost

Almost all human operations were impeded by the COVID-19 pandemic, including the exchange of SCORE CIMSA activities. IFMSA exchange programs, notably Hosting Incoming, have been postponed for more than two years. Because of the pandemic and rules from practically every country in the globe to stop flights and welcome foreigners, this activity cannot be carried out. But, happily, all activities are back to normal this year, and incoming hosting is resumed. It was an honor for SCORE CIMSA FK USK in July to be chosen as one of the communities to host the first event following the COVID-19 epidemic. Hosting incoming is one of the SCORE Program's major activities, as well as the IFMSA Exchange, where we are the host or local who will accept incoming (overseas medical students engaging in student exchanges to Indonesia) as a location for the student exchange program's proceed. There are two IFMSA Exchange hosting Incoming options: SCOPE Hosting Incoming (professional exchange) and SCORE Hosting Incoming (Research Exchange). SCORE Hosting Incoming is one of a series of research-based IFMSA exchange events in which incomings will undertake research on research projects at SCORE CIMSA-Indonesia. Prior to hosting, each local SCORE is required to find or have Project Hunting as a requirement and a location for incomings to carry out research projects, who will be supervised directly by the instructor who owns the research project. The hosting incoming activity is not an ordinary student exchange activity, on this occasion SCORE accommodates medical students from all over the world so that they can conduct research based on international networking, they can do research on the country they want to go to. The goal of this program is to teach medical students in international research in order to increase the quality of medical research in Indonesia and to develop more qualified human resources.

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There are several types of research including: basic research, clinical research with lab work, clinical research without lab work, and GAP Exchange. During the hosting activity, several main agendas were held including: Welcoming Party, Social Program, Research Activities, Presentation of Research Results, and of course Farewell Party as the closing agenda. Usually this activity will last for 2o days. Upon landing in Indonesia, incomings will be given UAT (Upon Arrival Training) by LORE as an overview of the exchange and what rules they must respect. Research activities are often conducted in hospitals or laboratories, but when the experiment is over, incomings are permitted to process data outside of the hospital, reducing the amount of time spent in the hospital; they may undertake data processing in coffee while resting. In the last week of the exchange, they will generally present the outcomes of the research project in front of the dean, tutor, and other significant persons. Every weekend, the social program will be organized, and the committee will invite them to tourist and historical sites, among other things. They are quite pleased with the uniqueness of the nation of Indonesia, and the scenery is really natural. Meanwhile, during the welcoming and farewell parties, the incomings spent a lot of time getting to know CIMSA members, which really helped us as medical students to increase relationships and also be able to exchange ideas and share different experiences on medical treatment based on our respective countries – each. As a contact person, I gain so many benefits from expanding my relationships with incoming parties, hospitals, and doctors, and I also know more or less about the research method and research projects carried out by incoming, and of course, being able to travel with Caucasians is very nice, so thank you very much for this wonderful opportunity.

The Crucial Role of Human Subjects Protection in Medical Research

A few examples of the advantages of medical research are the high standard of healthcare and disease therapies available today. Medical research is crucial for scientists and medical professionals to better grasp the most effective diagnostic techniques, therapeutic approaches, and other strategies to advance global health. There are numerous methods for conducting medical research, including animal experiments, computer simulation, and laboratory work. Still, to ensure its efficacy and safety, every drug or research product must first be evaluated on humans before being utilized in actual clinical settings. To protect human subjects, this phase heavily requires adherence to ethical norms. However, in the early days, there were no regulations for medical experimentation on humans. There was no clear line between medical research and clinical research, thus both of them were simply conducted at the same time. Following multiple ethical transgressions in earlier experiments, officials and scientists have ultimately agreed on a number of rules. The Tuskegee Syphilis Study, which took place in Macon County, Alabama, is one of the most serious ethical violations. The Tuskegee research was carried out when there was no known cure for syphilis. Enrollment of the human subjects occurred without their knowledge or consent. They were never aware of the study's potential outcomes and advantages, and they weren't even aware of the study's name. In the middle of the study, penicillin was revealed to be the treatment for syphilis by another study. However, they were not permitted to stop the trial in order to obtain penicillin.

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Another famous ethical violation is The Nuremberg Medical Trial, where German physicians were testing the “Euthanasia Program” by systematically killing people who are considered “unworthy” of life. Additionally, thousands of convicts were used in pseudoscientific medical experiments without their consent. The trial resulted in a significant number of deaths or impairments. Another example is Sidney Farber's development of chemotherapy at Boston Children's Hospital. Despite the fact that Dr. Farber and his colleagues were successful in developing a cancer treatment, informed consents were not asked. These notable occurrences served as the catalyst for the creation of medical research legislation. The highlighted issues were lack of informed consent and harm caused by the experiment. The Belmont Report, which outlines the fundamental ethical precepts for doing research involving human people, is the first ethical guideline. Three fundamental ethical concepts are stated in the Belmont Report: (1) respect for persons, (2) beneficence, and (3) justice. According to the first principle, every human subject should have informed consent to participate and be fully informed of the potential advantages and drawbacks of the research. The second principle mandates that medical research be conducted in a manner that optimizes advantages and reduces risks to the subjects. Last, the third principle, justice is the concept of equitable allocation of the risks and benefits to each participant. As of today, ethical regulations for conducting research with human subjects have been stated in many codes and guidelines. For greater research and societal advantages, it is our responsibility as researchers to make sure we abide by all rules and regulations.