Socially distanced but socially connected - humanising a biomedicine capstone subject in Covid-times and beyond

Socially distanced but socially connected - humanising a biomedicine capstone subject in Covid-times and beyond

Dr Saw Hoon Lim and Dr Rosa McCarty
Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences

Frontiers in Biomedicine is a 3rd year Bachelor of Biomedicine capstone subject. This subject is interdisciplinary and covers four main global health issues - metabolic syndrome, stem cells, respiratory disease and mental health. Unlike many other subjects students have taken, Frontiers in Biomedicine analyses more than just scientific content. The science is enveloped with all aspects of health, including a large emphasis on population and global health. With a large cohort of over 600 highly motivated and ambitious students who are studying remotely, building a strong connection with academic staff and encouraging camaraderie and inclusivity amongst the cohort is critical.

This presentation details the approaches used to humanise the subject. Each block of study started each with personal stories in a ‘setting the scene video’, providing personal insight related to the theme of the block; a weekly gazette curated in a newspaper style but set in a humorous and engaging manner was published to share achievements and to look forward to the week ahead. Students contributed as guest writers. The gazette was the highlight of the subject and provided everyone an outlet for their creative juices. Unbeknownst to the students, this was our way to keep everyone connected and on track. Our last lecture ended with a subject graduation event thanks to Zoom video filters.

This Zoom presentation was part of the Melbourne CSHE Teaching and Learning Conference 2021 held on Wednesday 2 June 2021.