On Wednesday 15 September the inaugural KMMS Prize-Giving event took place. For the first time, KMMS celebrated the academic success of many of its students and the hard work and excellence of its staff.

Many of the generous benefactors who donated prizes joined the event in the Lecture Theatre of KMMS’s new Pears building at the University of Kent.  Prizes were awarded in three different categories: student prizes, achievement awards and five awards given by MedSoc, the medical student society.

The MedSoc prize for “Making a Difference to Student Experience” went to the KMMS Librarian Manfred Gschwandtner.

The Vice-President of MedSoc introduced the prize:

“The first prize is for making a difference to student experience. This prize was awarded to the member of staff that students feel made the biggest positive difference to their experience at KMMS this year.

There were 8 nominees for this year, but one, in particular, shone through. This person was always on hand to problem solve and does so with willingness and passion. He does a lot of work behind the scenes and in the teaching sessions he has delivered, his passion shines through. Not only this, but he also secured revision resource ‘Osmosis’ for students which they say has made a huge difference to their learning.”

Manfred explains:

“This prize is a collaborative achievement for my library colleagues at University of Kent, Canterbury Christ Church University and the Drill Hall Library, Medway campus who have worked tirelessly to provide excellent support to KMMS students. It comes after an intensive two-year set up period for the KMMS library and the first year of providing library services across different campuses.

We made sure that our first year students had access to the library resources they needed for their studies including textbooks, journals and innovative new learning resources such as RX Bricks, Osmosis and Complete Anatomy, an up-to-date anatomy app  as part of our ‘digital first’ strategy which aimed to provide all core resources in a digital format. Joined up reading lists and a dedicated KMMS LibrarySearch catalogue were developed that allow students to search for library resources easily across the two universities’ libraries.

KMMS academics helped students to develop the necessary skills to best utilise the library resources by embedding information and digital literacy teaching in the curriculum. There has also been extensive support from the institutions’ front line services, ensuring a streamlined student experience including the introduction of a courier service between universities so students can return their books at either library”.

Caption: Manfred Gschwandtner is presented his award by Mimoza Osmani, Vice-President and Mary McDonald, President, MedSoc.