Happy moments are again engraved in the Faculty of Medicine of Universitas Sumatera Utara, the return of the Olympic team delegation with one of its students named Moammer Saddam Syahputra Siregar won the Bronze Medal at the 12th SIMPIC (Siriraj International Medical Microbiology, Parasitology and Immunology Competition) 2023 organized by the Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand, which took place from March 2-5, 2023.
The SIMPIC competition is routinely held annually by Mahidol University and has become one of the most prestigious competitions in the fields of Microbiology, Parasitology, and Immunology in the world. Unlike the previous year, which was held online, the competition was offline in Bangkok, Thailand. This year's participants came from universities worldwide, such as Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, Taiwan, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Singapore, and Vietnam. The USU Faculty of Medicine sends delegates every year and has succeeded in achieving individual ranking achievements in previous years. This year The Faculty of Medicine USU sent three teams of 4 students and 1 supervisor per team. Team 1 consisted of Tantri Thahirah Pasaribu, Annisa Aisa Ramadhani, Moammer Saddam Syahputra Siregar, and Ruth Maria Situmorang with supervisor Dr. Sri Amelia, M.Kes. Team 2 consisted of Fauzan Azmi Hasti Habibi Samosir, M. Fakhri Ali, Alvin Ivander, and Lenny Florentina Ginting with supervisor Dr. dr. Dewi Masyithah Darlan, DAP&E, MPH, Sp.ParK. Team 3 consisted of Happy Willibrordus Maria Nainggolan, Vincent Wijaya, Fitriza Widya Putri, Grace Hany Hot Asi Sianturi with supervisor Dr. Dina Aprillia Ariestine M.Ked(PD), Sp.PD, K.Ger.
The Faculty of Medicine USU delegation team arrived in Bangkok, Thailand, on Wednesday, March 1, 2023. The program began the next day, with the opening ceremony at Ratchapanadda-Sirindhorn Hall, Siriraj Hospital, and continued with group activities from afternoon to evening, introducing Thai culture and handicrafts. Day 2 was a City Tour visiting tourist destinations in Bangkok, including the Siam Museum and Wat Pho (Wat Phra Chetuphon), and continued with a Dinner Cruise, Alangka Cruise on the Chao Phraya River, which presents a night view of Bangkok and food offerings as well as traditional Thai music and dance performances.
The competition began on Saturday for the Qualifying Round, which consisted of individual and team rounds. The round will be taken by 40 teams, with the best scores from 50 teams that registered at SIMPIC 2023. The entire Faculty of Medicine USU delegation made it to the Second Round on Sunday. Although the team's struggle stopped in the Second Round, The Faculty of Medicine USU won one Bronze Medal in the Individual Ranking on behalf of Moammer Saddam Syahputra Siregar. This year marks a new milestone for Faculty of Medicine USU, where all three teams made it to the Second Round. For the previous two years, only 1 and 2 teams made it to the second round, with Individual Ranking Bronze Medal in 2021 and Bronze and Silver Medal in 2022.
The SIMPIC 2023 competition is not only a competition to increase the competitive spirit between students in the health sector around the world, but this event is also a place of friendship and cultural recognition to interact with each other and share knowledge to establish bonds between health students worldwide. The USU delegation team feels proud and grateful to have been able to compete and enter the Second Round with the hope of getting a higher position in the SIMPIC competition in the coming years.