Health Promotion

College of Medicine, Alfaisal University
Department of Family & Community Medicine
Prepared and organized by: Dr. Baraa Alghalyini
February 24-25, 2015

On the 25th and 26th of February, an exhibition was organized by Dr. Baraa Alghalyini, Course Director of Primary Health Care and Public Health, for females and males, respectively. The Dean of College of Medicine, Dr. Khalid Alkattan, Vice Dean of College of Medicine, Dr. Dana Bakheet, Vice Dean of Admissions, Dr. Hend Alsudairy, and the Director of Accreditation and Quality Assurance, Mr. Munib Qutaishat, along with other faculty members and students, were invited to attend the exhibition. Primary Health Care is a course taught by Dr. Baraa at the Medical College of Alfaisal University. In this course, students learn about Health Care, importance of Family Medicine, and the roles and responsibilities of family physicians. This course also emphasizes on the importance of community services. Community services allow students to develop civic and social responsibility skills and become more aware of their community needs. Therefore, as part of the course, Dr. Baraa introduced a field project; in which, students are required to promote a health-related topic by discussing it with peers at their previous high schools.


During their first semester, first year medical students of Alfaisal University worked in groups and carefully selected topics which require more awareness and attention in the Gulf region. A variety of topics were agreed upon by the students and the course director, Dr. Baraa. There were 4 categories of topics chosen by the girls. The first category included topics related to medicine, such as, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, melanoma, cervical cancer, and general first aid. The second category contained topics related to environment, such as environmental health and pollution. The third category contained topics related to society, for example, bullying, food disorders, and breakfast. The fourth, and last, category consisted of topics which are essential to girls, such as puberty and menstruation. On the other hand, males discussed topics, which are important but not widely discussed, such as social anxiety, disability, smoking and graffiti. The students, then, chose an appropriate age group and school to present their topics. They went to international and local schools, in Riyadh, to educate the students. Some of the schools chosen by the students included Manarat Al-Riyadh International School, American International School, and Sri Lankan International School.

Students were welcomed by the schools, and performed exceptionally well. They delivered their topics using PowerPoint presentations, posters, brochures and models. Moreover, they arranged activities and games to engage and actively involve the students in the learning process. The presentations were highly appreciated by not only the students, but also by teachers and school principals.

The course director, Dr. Baraa Alghaliyini, with the support of Alfaisal University, Student Affairs, and GFMIG, organized an event titled Health Promotion Project Exhibition (HPPE) to share the students' work with the local students at Alfaisal University. Gulf Family Medicine Interest Group (GFMIG) is a group of students which aims to promote family medicine and community services in the gulf region.

The objective of this exhibition was to disseminate the students' work, invest in community services, and encourage the students. Several booths were set up by the students, where they displayed posters, PowerPoint presentations, and supplementary handicrafts that were used for their projects. The students also shared fruitful experiences of their school visit. In addition to that, they stated that this project was beneficial to their development and learning; it taught them time management, leadership skills, and how to work in groups. Visitors were truly impressed by the enthusiastic and ambitious students and gave positive and encouraging feedback. Dr. Khalid remarked saying he was amazed by his students and faculty. Dr. Hend said, "I am proud of all of you and the great job you have achieved in the field of awareness." And lastly, Dr. Dana said all groups were outstanding.

Although Alfaisal University excels in academics, it lacks to provide services to the community. This field project, followed by the exhibition, proved to be a successful attempt in increasing awareness regarding community services at Alfaisal University.

Gulf Family Medicine Interest Group (GFMIG)