Having dropped the ball in such a scandalous way, the CU-MSIH adminstration was now frantically trying to convince each student on a case by case basis that all was just fine. The moon was surely made of cheese and all was fine in the CU-MSIH program. Any dismay or shock expressed by any CU-MSIH student were quickly attenuated by CU-MSIH administrative theatrics implying that the student was the only one or a member of a small minority who had a problem with the horror which was unfolding in the program. When I informed one of my CU-MSIH classmates that the administration was doing exactly this in my case, my CU-MSIH classmate was unnerved and shared some communiques which he/she exchanged with the CU-MSIH administration.
In the following E-mail thread between me (AUTHOR OF MEDICALSCHOOLCATASTROPHE.COM) and the CU-MSIH student (CU-MSIH STUDENT), the CU-MSIH student shares one of a number of communiques he/she exchanged with the CU-MSIH administration. The name of the CU-MSIH student was intentionally anonymized here in order to shield him/her from the less than pleasant consequences he/she would have to endure on account of the neurotic paranoia present in the CU-MSIH program if his/her identity were revealed. The E-mail conversation thread is in the To: “recipient” From: “sender” form and is posted below:
To: AUTHOR OF MEDICALSCHOOLCATASTROPHE.COM
From: CU-MSIH STUDENT
Hi,
I thought you might be interested in the letter I sent to [CU-MSIH
CO-DIRECTOR] et al. Judging by his response, he is not
interested at
all in what the students have to say about their experiences.
To: CU-MSIH ADMINISTRATION
From: CU-MSIH STUDENT
Dear All,
Before I fly back to [HOME TOWN OF CU-MSIH STUDENT] tonight to
prepare for our finals, I want to share with you what I hope will be
some constructive feedback. I know that the MSIH administration has
probably been on the receiving end of countless emails and phone calls
from students and parents, ranging from hysterical to demanding. I hope
that what I say does not add to that chorus of nagging voices, but
rather offers some constructive input. I also know that you and your
families have just been through the same awful conflict that we have. I
am grateful that they are safe and that everyone is now breathing a
sigh of relief. I look forward to moving past the last month and
striving for a positive and rewarding completion of the MSIH program.
In a nutshell, I was shocked and disappointed that the administration did not have a well thought out contingency plan in place for a situation such as the most recent flare up with Gaza – a known (there have been rockets in Be’er Sheva for almost 5 years) and predictable risk that should have been prepared for. From the response offered in the most recent email, there seems to be a complete lack of accountability on the part of the administration regarding the handling of the situation and what was needed to overcome it. What my class, family, and I would have appreciated is some modicum of acknowledgement that the response to the situation was not perfect (or acceptable even), and that they were working to resolve the disruption and create something along the lines of a credible plan for the future where this will not happen again. I also find the repeated comparisons to hurricanes Sandy and Katrina inappropriate and insensitive. If we learned anything in the US from Katrina (and what we are learning from Sandy) it is that there need to be specific plans in place to deal with unexpected and devastating events. Perhaps you would consider appointing a task force to establish a safety and academic contingency plan for future events. Communicating with the deans of Tulane and NYU would be a great way to start.
One very positive result of the last two weeks is that the students did a remarkable job of communicating with each other and coordinating with Israeli contacts throughout the country to find safe and welcoming outposts for a majority of students out of rocket fire.
At an MSIH hosted Shabbat dinner last week, I was surprised to find out that the BGU med students and BGU/US exchange students are completing their semesters without a major upheaval that we are currently facing. If you were unaware, the US exchange program had a reasonable plan in place that kept the students safe and in the know, and that facilitated the students’ ability to move towards the completion of their semester without disruption. The students were picked up by bus and temporarily relocated to Sde Boker for a few days where they continued with classes. I am not suggesting an identical plan for MSIH, but I just wanted to bring to your attention ways in which other programs have dealt with this.
I don’t think I can adequately express to you the degree of stress, anxiety and financial duress 8 days of rocket fire followed by inadequate communication and a tentative plan to cram all of our exams into a tight schedule at the end of December has had on our class. Again, while the rocket fire was stressful and unforeseen, it is the way it has been handled, and is still being handled, that causes the most angst. I, for one, feel as if my physical safety and academic security have been jeopardized by lack of forethought and inadequate planning. In general, I feel that the overall response on the part of the administration has been shockingly tone deaf. We don’t need reminders about the sacrifices physicians make on a daily basis, or references to the start-up industry in Israel, and affirmations about how we will all get through this together because you always do. We just want to have faith that you know what you’re doing.
I have learned over the past month that the students at MSIH are incredibly flexible and resilient to deal so graciously with the stressful and unforeseen circumstances of the past few weeks. I truthfully do not expect a response to this email; I just hope that you consider what I have said so we can all move past this and on to the future. Have a great month and we’ll see you in December.
Afterthought:
The CU-MSIH student's letter was dismissed by the CU-MSIH CO-DIRECTOR with a short statement labeling the letter (as well as the CU-MSIH student's other letters) as "disparaging". It was of no surprise to me to have heard this story from the CU-MSIH student after my own unpleasant dealings with the CU-MSIH administrative apparatus. Only Franz Kafka or perhaps Prince with a few raspberry berets would be of service here to more adequately describe these CU-MSIH experiences. Then again, all this may be surreal beyond the metamorphosis and the raspberry berets.
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