by Dr Nicoletta Nicolaou, Assistant Professor

The Medical School participated with its own kiosk in Researchers’ Night 2018, held at the Lanitis Carob Mill Complex in Limassol on 28 September 2018 from 5pm to midnight. The event, which was open to the public, was also open for organised school visits on the mornings of 27 and 28 September. The event was a celebration of science and research, focussing on the theme of Cultural Heritage. Visitors of all ages had the opportunity to enjoy a creative event and to learn about the role, importance and practical applications of research in everyday life through a variety of experiments, games, competitions and music.

The Medical School’s highly popular activity booth was titled ‘Become a surgeon for the night!’ Visitors had the opportunity to engage in exciting activities which included:

  • Watching a 3D house production virtual reality video on how to tie a surgical knot and then trying it out themselves
  • Learning about the history of surgery in Cyprus displayed on banners
  • Testing their knowledge at the ‘Wheel of Surgery’, by answering questions from the categories of ‘Types of surgery’, ‘Ancient Medicine’ and ‘Nutrition’.
  • Watching how a surgical eye operation is conducted, chatting to ophthalmologists and medical students and discovering the anatomy of the eye through eye models.
  • Dressing like a surgeon and taking a photo in front of an … operating theatre.

The event was organised by the Research Promotion Foundation (RPF) in collaboration with academic and research institutions and other organisations in Cyprus. This annual event is an initiative of the European Commission and takes place simultaneously in almost all European countries.  The event in Cyprus was funded by the European Commission under the “Horizon 2020” Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions.

Clay hot bottles used for various parts of the body discovered during excavations in Paphos and dating back to last century BC. This picture along many others were displayed on a banner about the history of medicine /surgery in Cyprus.