IQMU 2020

The International Quiz for Medical Undergraduates (IQMU) was inaugurated on the 6th of March, 2020. Around 20 teams across the world participated in the quiz. The inauguration was an hour-long event and as a part of it, a beautiful prayer was sung by the students of MAHE to motivate the participants, followed by the lighting of the lamp by the dignitaries of Manipal University. The Pro-Chancellor of MAHE, Dean of KMC and Head of External Affairs, Manipal then graced the event with their address to the participants.

The first round of the quiz then followed. This was a forty-minute long written round where participants were provided with a multiple-choice based questionnaire. Round 2 kicked off with 23 teams battling it out in the dissection hall. Questions, presented like spotters, were on paraclinical subjects; forensic medicine, anatomy and pathology. Within an hour, only 10 teams managed to qualify for the next round.

Tempus Pretioso, KMC’s emergency medicine society, organised an intensely interactive workshop in the Simulation Lab. Medical skills like oxygen delivery systems and decontamination of skin and eyes were demonstrated. Participants were guided through 2 scenarios warranting immediate medical intervention; a poisonous gas situation, where an ammonia factory exploded, and a radiation emergency, where a nuclear power plant malfunctioned.

The experience was livened up by Tempus members acting as patients, with realistic decor and dialogues included. Justitia, KMC’s forensic medicine club, and Cutting Edge, KMC’s surgery club, also organised one of their popular workshops.

The finals of IQMU 2020 took place on the 8th of March at TMA Pai Halls. It started off with 25 teams which were gradually narrowed down to the top 6 teams after the rigorous preliminary rounds. The quizmaster for the finals was Professor Suneel from the Department of Pediatrics. The teams went through numerous rounds like the medical trivia round, rapid-fire round, long connect round etc. After an enthralling finale, the team from KMC Manipal consisting of Sufyan, Jahnavi, Sudeep and Anurupa bagged 1st place with a cash prize of ₹50,000.

Interact Halls hosted a carnival-themed Gala Night, offering a reprieve to the students, and a chance to socialize amidst games and music. Starting at 6:30, the crowd only grew to build a merry vibe.

Games were set up across the lecture halls, including the Emoji game and the blindfolded bindi game. Participants hazarded numerous attempts as they tried to shoot down the tower of cups in the game of Glass and Ball. How can one miss out on a game like Heads Up where the pressure is on the one team member who has to decide if it’s just bad dancing skills or a friend is trying to act like a worm, hmm? Students gathered in the halls to dance, click pictures in the photo booths set up and mingle with students from other colleges.

After dinner, the night was not over. IQMU hosted their very own version of Treasure Hunt which you could play in teams of two. The rules? As you move through the hall blindfolded, a friend has to guide you, not with words as simple as ‘left left!’ It had to be ‘Ribbit Ribbit!’

It was an event enjoyed thoroughly by the participants as was evident from the smiles on everyone’s faces as they left the halls.

–Written by Robin Cherian, Mihika Antonia Dean, Ridhima Sharma, Asma Abidin