Our Humanitarian Medical Aid Course (HMAC) is an educational experience like no other. Developed by the Doctors Worldwide faculty and based on our 20+ years of experience in the development and emergency field, the institutional learning of sending volunteers overseas, and the questions and experiences this has evoked, the course is now in its fifteenth year.
This year, our HMAC session was a little different. Although held in person unlike last year, the original two-day programme was condensed for the first time into a one-day session that took place at the BIMA National Conference in Warwick.
For those who haven’t heard of our Humanitarian Medical Aid Course (HMAC) before, it is a programme aimed at sharing knowledge and experiences, encouraging debate, and promoting reflection as well as having a good time networking, while introducing concepts around humanitarian medical emergencies and longer-term health development programmes. It isn’t some run-of-the-mill didactic study day, or technical pre-deployment skills training, but a course made rich by our faculty and participants.
“Knowledgeable session and the faculty were friendly. Loved the practical session at the end of the session!”
– 2024 Participant
This year, participants got to hear from some of our board members about their valuable contributions towards the humanitarian medicine sector as well as their journeys into Doctors Worldwide and the field in general. In addition, our interactive practical group session ‘Dealing with Uncertainty in Emergency Response’ (often the most popular element of the course for many attendees) was expertly implemented into the one day schedule to ensure a dynamic range of participation and knowledge sharing.
