ICMM LOAC Course for medical practitioners

Report

Background
The ICMM kindly agreed that this Regional Course could be held in the KSA which then took place during the period 4 to 9 December 2009 in Dhahran.

The Course contents was based on the contents of the annual course being held in Spiez, Switzerland.

Venue
The venue chosen for the course was the Prince Sultan Military College for Health Sciences, which proved to be the absolute ideal venue with its excellent Plenary Hall, practical breakaway rooms, high quality of accommodation, food and support services.

Teachers were nicely accommodated in the Dhahran International Hotel, not far from the Prince Sultan Military College for Health Sciences.

Participants
The 24 Military participants from various Military Hospitals and sick bays were divided in 3 classes for exercises after lectures in the Plenary. Two of them went from abroad countries (Oman and Tunisia), the others were Saudians.

Commanders of the Course
The Course director was Major General Dr.Khalid Ketab Eid AL OTAIBI, the Surgeon General of the Saudian Military Medical Armed Forces Service, represented by Major General Ali Bin Saleh AL-ZAMIL.

Major General (MD) M. MERLIN represented the ICMM in the KSA.

Brigadier General Saleh Bin Ahmad AL-SHAYEA, Director of the Prince Sultan Military College for Health Sciences, organised the course with his team and was the Course Coordinator. Colonel Johan CROUSE, from the South African National Defence Force, as his co-course Coordinator, was heading the teaching team.

Lecturers/Instructors/Class leaders
The same team of Spiez were used so as to maintain the same standard of the course, namely:

1. Col Johan CROUSE, South African National Defence Force
2. Lt Col Max ZHANDT, Swiss Armed Forces
3. Lt Col Thorsten SCHAAY, German Armed Forces
4. Lt Col Sylvian FOURNIER (ret), Canadian Armed Forces

Colonel (MD, Prof) Hans BAER (Swiss Armed Forces), Chairman of the ICMM Technical Commission on Education and Commander of the LOAC Course in Spiez, gave three tele-conferences from Zurich.

Course evaluation
All course participants (Military Medical Personnel) were requested to evaluate, individually and separately, all plenary lectures, all class lectures and all exercises in classrooms as well as accommodation, opening and closing ceremony.

Lessons learned have been summarized during the final meeting of the coordinating and teaching staff and will be used to prepare the next session to be held from 4 to 9 December 2010.

This first Middle East Regional Session of the LOAC Course is a success, and after the first African Regional Session of the LOAC Course held in May in South Africa, gives a second time the proof that the concept of Spiez is exportable.

Summary
The course was very well organised and conducted in a professional manner of a high standard and indeed did the ICMM proud.