Academic Societies Help Students Explore and Specialise

09 December 2022

For Students

There are many English-language student-led academic societies at Rīga Stradiņš University (RSU) focusing on a wide variety of medical specialties. To get a better understanding of what they do, who the people organising them are, and how they benefit RSU students, I spoke to representatives of three societies.

RSU ISA Academic Societies

Manuel Sustelo is a Portuguese medical student at Rīga Stradiņš University (RSU). He's currently in his fourth year and is the Head of the Dermatology and Venereology Academic Society (DVAS).

Suchet Dhillon is from India and has been studying at RSU since 2018. She used to be part of the RSU Gynaecology and Obstetrics Association, but is now on the board of the Neurology and Neurosurgery Academic Society (NeuroNS), which is dormant this semester.

Lilian Timonen has been at RSU for almost 3 years. She comes from Finland and worked in a Plastic Surgery Centre in Helsinki before coming to RSU. She has been on the board of the Plastic Surgery Student Association (PSSA) since 2021.

Where did your interest in your specialty come from?

Manuel (DVAS): This is the one specialty I feel connected to and that I'm really passionate about. I really like the fact that in dermatology most of the pathologies are visible, or at least some manifestations of them. This influences the relationship between patients and doctors because patients can actually see the problem and are therefore more likely to comply with treatment.

Suchet (NeuroNS): My mom is a gynaecologist and that's been a big influence for me with how I deal with articles and researchers. Soon I came to understand that after working with gynaecology that my interests lay elsewhere, which is why I joined the neurosurgery society.

Manuel Sustelo

Lilian Timonen

Lilian (PSSA): It started when I was very young. I don't know why because my parents work in business, not in the medical field. I've always been very good with my hands, so I was drawn to the aesthetic and reconstructive part when I saw how much example the impact of fixing a cleft palate can have on a patient's quality of life. That was extremely interesting to me.

Are there any misconceptions about your field?

Manuel (DVAS): Dermatology is not just about skin or problems regarding skin.

Dermatologists treat different conditions of the skin, hair, and nails. Dermatology also focuses on systemic diseases and pathologies and their cutaneous manifestations as well as cutaneous repercussions. We try to work with other societies on subjects like infectious diseases, or other pathologies that might not really fall under dermatology, but that can be detected/suspected early on through proper dermatological examination.

Suchet (NeuroNS): Students are nervous about neurosurgery or see it as something very complex.

We had a long list of students who wanted to be active members, but none of them wanted to be on the board, which is why our society is dormant today. We do learn the anatomy of neurology during our second semester, but we don't get into the subject too much, which makes it intimidating. Even though there has been so much development compared to when I started studying in the Anatomicum. They now have 3D printing and I highly encourage people to go there!

Lilian (PSSA): When I first got interested, I thought plastic surgery was only aesthetic, but when you go deeper it's about burn victims, skin grafts etc. There's a lot that you can do after specialising.

It's a very competitive speciality. Usually people might think that there's a lot of money involved so that's why they choose plastic surgery. We want to explain that it's not that easy. The associations are meant to help people understand what a specialty is and make the right decision for themselves.

What are some activities you are planning this year?

Manuel (DVAS): We are going beyond just academics for the first time. This semester, we will take a look at what it's like for RSU students who are going to do their residencies abroad. We're going to look at what options there are in dermatology, which countries they can go to, how they can apply, how they can increase their potential and enrich their curriculum. We'll also be talking about research opportunities.

DVAS meeting

I think that the role of the societies should not only be about increasing the knowledge that students have, but also to give practical help.

Lilian (PSSA): We have a lot planned! We're going to have guest lecture about burns, breast augmentation and a new implant that is being used, reconstructive surgery for resuscitating paralysis in the face by nerve and muscle transplantation, and then a talk about non-invasive procedures like fillers and toxins and all of that, including micro-needling and advanced lasers, which are frequently used for burn victims for skin resurfacing. Next semester we're going to have a new meeting that we have never had before - we're going to explain what to consider when you're applying to specialise in plastic surgery.

Simulated plastic surgery at the RSU METC

I don't know if people know, but it's going to be hard to get a spot to specialise in plastic surgery, so we're going to address expectations versus reality.

Does the association have a mentor?

Manuel (DVAS): Our mentor, Prof. Dr. Elga Bataraga, is present at all meetings. Prof. Bataraga is an incredible source of knowledge and I can say that for me, and I am certain that for many others too, she is an academic role model.

Lilian (PSSA): Yes, we have a mentor. We always need to have someone present at meetings to make sure we're saying the right things and not putting things out there that aren't true. As a mentor we have had Dr Ansis Ģīlis, for example.

How does a meeting work?

Manuel (DVAS): Once a topic is chosen, members can choose to present the topic. Active members do the research and the presentation. They stay in contact with our head of research on the board who gives them the guidelines, sources and guides them in the right direction. Then the presentation is sent to the board and we review it and send it to our mentor. Our mentor reviews it to make sure that we are medically accurate and scientifically correct, and then it's presented at a meeting.

What have you gained by being part of this association?

Manuel (DVAS): I think I've gained experience not only in dermatology, but in my relationship with people and how to try to make sure that our students learn.

I've made connections with students, mentors, and other dermatologists. I think it offers a lot more than just the academic part of things. I learned a lot more about how to interact with people in an academic way as well as in a clinical setting and how to organise my work.

DVAS lecture

Suchet (NeuroNS): When you initially come, you don't have anything to lose, so being part of any society doesn't harm. I've learned a lot about people, social networking, how to conduct research, how to be more efficient in my work, and how to run an organisation.

If you don't know what you want to be, at least you can exclude certain subjects.

Lilian (PSSA): The biggest thing I have learned is about skin grafting. I personally did not see that in the plastic surgery clinic in Finland where I worked. The lectures we had have been very interesting. It's quite amazing that there are so many possibilities and dimensions in plastic surgery.

What would you say to a student still unsure about whether to join?

Manuel (DVAS): We're very open to anyone, even students from the first semester.

I don't believe that you need to have to have finished all the core subjects like anatomy, pathology, histology, physiology. If you have an interest in a subject you can definitely start early.

We are also receptive to any questions. If you don't understand, we can stop the presentation and explain the background that might be needed to understand the topic.

RSU Info Fair

Suchet (NeuroNS): When I attended the info fair representing our group, I noticed that many younger semester students thought they were too young to be part of the society.

I feel like being in a lower semester is the best time to start exploring to see what they're interested in.

Joining an association helps you build out your social network and connections and even at this early stage. Being a student is the best time to explore because it gives you a lot of time and opportunities.

Lilian (PSSA): Join, because you have nothing to lose. You get to know a lot of people who are interested in the same thing as you.

If you don't like it you can always leave. It's not a job that you need to do. You can really get very deep into these things if you want but it's not a burden to be in a society because it's very minimal and of course everyone understands that we're med students and that we need time for studying and all of that.