Manipal International Dental Summer Training-2016

Manipal College of Dental Sciences hosted the Manipal International Dental Summer Training (MIDST) as a means of providing international dental students a glimpse into dentistry as practiced in India. The program was a 10 day affair starting from 18^th to the 28^th of August 2016.

The inaugural edition of MIDST had five participants, two from the University of Malaya, and three from the Universiti Kebangsan Malaysia (UKM). The participants reached Manipal on 17^th August at 7.30AM by train from Cochin.

They were taken to the New International Hostel immediately. Later were taken to the Office of International Affairs where their paperwork was processed. In the meantime they also visited the Experience Theatre at MU. The formal program began on the 18^th morning with its inauguration by Dr.Narayana Sabhahit, the Honorable Registrar of MU who was the Guest of Honor for the occasion.

Following the inaugural ceremony, a campus tour was arranged for the participants in the morning. This was followed by a visit to MCODS, Manipal in the afternoon where the team met the Dean, Dr.Nirmala N.Rao and visited all the departments. Later in the evening, they attended an Odissi dance program organized by SPIC MACAY at MIT, Manipal

On the second day of the program, live demonstrations and hands on exercises were done in Aesthetic Dentistry and Dental Lasers. Dr.Shashirashmi Acharya and Dr.Rashmi Nayak were the resource persons of the day.The next three days saw hectic Community outreach activities where the students attended dental camps in Kundapur, Hebri and Shirva.They also visited Murdeshwar for a day long trip on the 21^st of August.On the 24^th of August the students attended a live demonstrations and hands on exercises in the field of Periodontology and Endodontics. Dr.K.Mahalinga Bhat, Dr.Kanishk Gupta and Dr.Swati Pai were the resource persons of the day.

The next two days was devoted to an extensive program in Oral and Maxillofacial surgery where the entire range of activities from observation of dental extraction to surgeries in the OT was organized. Case discussions and lectures were also arranged by Dr.Abhay T.Kamath and his team.The program reached a formal conclusion on the 27^th of August through the certificate awarding ceremony.Dr.Ullas Kamath, Dean of MMMC was the Guest of Honor and gave away the certificates to the participants and the resource persons. Dr.Nirmala N.Rao, the Dean of MCODS, gave away the certificates to the volunteers.

The organizing committee later hosted a formal dinner for the participants in Manipal. The team departed the next night on 28^th August after a round of local sightseeing and shopping.Program feedback was collected from the participants at the end of the program. They were highly appreciative of the program including the Hostel facilities, Resource persons and program volunteers and the outreach program. Some of the suggestions for improvement were as follows:

1) An overnight dental camp in a remote area could be added.

2) More publicity for the program could be given to get more students

3) Additional information regarding the modes of transport can be given in the website.

4) A yoga class can be added to the program

Feedback from the Students 

Ng Jia Ying 

The hostel is way too good for the programme and we don’t actually need air conditioned room during this monsoon season, so perhaps, cost can be cut out at this accommodation part. A great programme with nice people, definitely will recommend juniors to join if there is opportunity next year. The only thing is missed out the yoga session as the timing was not right, but it is just a small matter. Overall, everything is good. Thank you for all the efforts.

Loo Chu Mian

It would be better to organise an overnight outreach camp. That will be more interesting, but the current arrangement is also good enough. Promotion of the programme should be more widespread. More detailed mode of transport can be included in flyers.

Ong Hsiao ting

Actually we don’t need such a good accommodation, maybe double room will do, expenses can be used for other better purposes such as yoga classes, local trips, important clinical demonstration. Excellent programme planning; useful n informative; doctors are nice; teachings suit our UG syllabus; love the combination of lectures, clinical demonstrations and hands on.

Do email me regarding second MIDST, I’ll tell my juniors my good experiences here and would encourage them to join. Preferably, an overnight outreach camp. Intern did a great job too. Thank you for all who put in an effort.

We are pleased by the hospitality of the MCODS MISDST committee members. We wish that the next programme would be carried out as such. The hostels were astonishing to us and we wish that the accommodation could be less luxurious than the current one. Five stars for the programme. The publicity of the programme could be done more to attract students from all around the world for participation.Knowledge wise did improve a lot. A bunch of exposure toward dental field that will help me to have better planning of my career path. Have a better insight of the future dentistry.