INTRODUCTION COMMUNITIES OUTREACH PROGRAMME
Physiology Department has been organizing Rakan Sains Program since 2002 and in this program, secondary school students were invited to Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) Health Campus. The objectives of the program were to provide information and expose students to various activities in USM Health Campus including attending forums, visiting laboratories, placement and preparation of mini-projects in specific laboratories or units followed by presentation of their projects.
Starting from 2013, Rakan Sains Program will be incorporated into the Physiology Department Community Outreach Program as part of the transformation process to support Universiti Sains Malaysia towards transformingservices and external activities. The program offers dissemination of a variety of health, wellness and safety education information, health screenings and talks. Other activities which will be included in COP are visits to orphanage and handicapped school and other non-specific activities including providing technical assistance in Sekolah Dalam Hospital and attending autistic children in Prince Kindergarden.
Objectives
The general objective of COP is to disseminate health related information and create health awareness among the school aged children.
Specific aims of Rakan Sains Program
- To expose students to a variety of scientific fields available in USM health campus
- To disseminate information regarding specific health related problems in teenagers e.g. obesity, sexual transmitted
diseases and drug addiction.
- To motivate secondary school aged children to obtain health related information
- To increase interaction between the staffs from the secondary schools and USM Physiology Department
Proposed activities
Health talks
Career talk
Health exhibition
Health examination
Health Quiz
Time
April and May or whenever it is applicable
Expected Outcome
1) Increase the knowledge regarding scientific fields available is USM health campus among
secondary school aged children
2) Increase the knowledge regarding health problems among the secondary school aged children
3) Detection of health problems in the school aged children and refer specific cases for further
management
4) Enhance collaborative work between secondary schools and Universiti Sains Malaysia