Educational aid for medical students learning within a conflict zone

Cardiff University and the Arab American University of Palestine (AAUP) have signed a ‘Memorandum of Understanding’ (MOU) to offer educational aid to medical students hoping to complete their studies within a conflict zone.

The MoU is a mechanism to register AAUP onto Cardiff University’s ‘Conflict and Catastrophe Route’ (for overseas medical students)’. The approach aims to de-politicise the reasoning behind a partnership within a conflict zone and instead looks to focus on the process of helping medical students all around the world to complete their studies. A similar approach has been successfully demonstrated in Cardiff’s partnership with National University Zaporizhzhya Polytechnic, Ukraine.  This scheme aims to ensure that Ukraine’s universities not only survive but emerge stronger from the war, allowing them to play a critical role in post-war reconstruction. It is a further example of our commitment to value education all around the world as a means of empowering young-people and communities.

The situation that AAUP now finds itself in due to conflict in the region, continues to present a substantial risk to the interruption of study of entire year groups progressing through their medical programme. Without input from external sources, this could lead to the delay in graduation of entire cohort(s) of doctors over the coming years. Consequently, there is potential for increased morbidity and mortality, both during and after the conflict.

Steve Riley, Pro-vice Chancellor for the College of Biomedical and Life Sciences at Cardiff University said: “The potential impact that conflict can have on education for profound. It becomes particularly acute when a delay in the training of medical students could potentially mean ‘life or death’ for some communities.  As a global university, I’m confident that offering educational aid where we can via our ‘Conflict and Catastrophe Route’ is the right thing to do, both for AAUP and other educational institutions caught up in conflict zones around the world.”

Dr Bara Asfour, President of the AAUP said “we are delighted to deepen our partnership with Cardiff University. This agreement will provide our students and faculty with unique opportunities to collaborate internationally, exchange knowledge, and make impactful contributions to global research.”

Professor Zaben, Dean for Medicine at AAUP, added, “This agreement gives us a farmwork to facilitate much needed clinical training and placements; we thank Professor Riley and everyone in Cardiff University and NHS colleagues for stepping forward and helping us during these extremely difficult times.”

Initially, the MOU will provide a framework to enable both parties to explore opportunities for potential collaboration. Such areas might include research collaborations, student and staff exchanges, and the potential to develop or exchange academic materials. It is a wonderful opportunity to co-create and share new knowledge and help restore a brighter future for the region.