"Science month 2022" was successfully held in October this year, which captivated both Latvian and international students in informative and interesting adventures. This time the topic was disaster medicine, which is relevant for every citizen of the world today. In each of the four weeks of the month from 04.11.-26.11. different activities took place, which gave the participants the opportunity to understand the topic from different perspectives and allowed them to get involved and try technological innovations themselves.
In the first week, on October 4th, students on the ZOOM platform had the opportunity to connect with Dr. Kaarel Uba for the lecture on operating algorithms in disaster medical situations in the pre-hospital period. On the other hand, on October 5, in cooperation with the International Students association, there was an opportunity to listen to the German emergency medical doctor Dr. Daniel Geppert's experiences in stories about disaster situations. In the second part of the lecture, Dr. Geppert also conducted an intriguing clinical case analysis.
"Science Month 2022" events continued with the second week of virtual reality adventure. In cooperation with Trauma simulator Exonicus, a simulation of VR glasses was prepared, where visitors could try their abilities in disaster situations in their free time, rescuing an injured person according to the resuscitation algorithm. Before the simulation, a small training session was also created for a better course of the workshop.
The third week was special with a remarkable range of workshops prepared by mentors from the Medical Education Technology Centre, Riga Technical University and Rīga Stradiņš University, improving not only the participants' knowledge, but also their practical skills. On October 17th, it was offered to delve into wound suturing, intubation, cricothyrotomy techniques, as well as find out how to act in cases of high energy or CNS trauma. Workshops on October 18th were on basic life support, automated external defibrillation, toxicology, and airway management in acute situations. On October 19th, the participants opened the electronics and chemistry workshops prepared by RTU, and the simulation technology and 3D modelling workshops created by MITC.
In the final week, on October 26th, a discussion-type lecture was held at the Museum of Anatomy, led by Dita Heiberga, Head of the Disaster Medicine Centre. The current situation specifically in Latvia and how we are prepared for possible disaster scenarios were discussed. At the end of the event, those present could ask the questions they were interested in and share their opinion.
