THE Rector of the University of NavarreMaría Iraburu, highlighted the “the ambition to serve” of the university and the importance of “knowledge transfer”. In this sense, he stressed the need for “proposals that, in dialogue with society, provide knowledge and reliability of research for citizens“.
This is what he said in his speech at the opening of the academic year 2024-2025which took place this Friday at Aula Magna of the Academic Center. The event was attended by various authorities, including María Chivite, President of the Government of Navarre, accompanied by several executive councillors; the President of the Regional Parliament, Unai Hualde; the Archbishop of Pamplona and Bishop of Tudela, Florencio Roselló; Jaime Goyena, Attorney General of Navarre; as well as the rectors of UPNA and UNED Pamplona, Ramón Gonzalo and Teresa Imízcoz.
The opening ceremony began with the parade of the academic procession, during which More than 200 doctors participated. The musical part of the mass and the parade was performed by the choir of the International Seminary of Bidasoa. Already in the Aula Magna, the Secretary General intervened, Jesus Maria Ezponda, who reported on the academic memory of the past year. Then, the professor of the Faculty of Nursing, Navidad Canga, gave the inaugural lecture, “Creating health wherever our daily lives take place.”
THE university rector He closed the event by highlighting the university center’s “service ambition” and its “undeniable contribution to society.” “The service dimension, when authentic, presents itself as something dynamic, alive, with enormous potential, which stimulates and challenges us all, both personally and in the shared work we do in departments, services and faculties,” he said. said.
Iraburu proposed three characteristics of this willingness to serve. On the one hand, “sensitivity to the needs of people and the environment”, “interest in the challenges and problems that surround us”. He stressed that “there is no better educational innovation” than “that which arises from the interest in being catalysts for student learning” and “there is no better stimulus for research or assistance than the desire to solve a problem and improve the lives of patients”.
Second, he cited the “desire to complicate our lives“which” reflects what happens when a person or a team is driven by this sense of dynamic service and embarks on new objectives. “Experience tells us that any ambitious project encounters resistance and difficulties and advances thanks to the impetus of people who do not consider tranquility as their only objective,” he stressed.
Third, he stressed the “ability to unite wills and create efforts“. In this regard, he said that there is an “invisible solidarity that unites those who seek the common good in all its forms and are willing to work whatever it takes to achieve it.”
THE UN Rector stressed that “we live in a time when many are questioning the very meaning of work and there is a common concern for the training of the people that the professional world needs.” And he considered that “the sense of giving and service can be the best stimulus to open new personal and institutional horizons that restore dignity to the professional task, that make companies attractive and that motivate our young people.”
Maria Iraburu highlighted “two aspects that constitute a condition and a means for the University to carry out this task of service”. On the one hand, the students, who “are an active and fundamental part of the university community” and are “those who question our approaches” and “bring out the best in ourselves”. The rector distinguished himself as one of the “big challenges“from the university and society to” broaden the channels so that any student enthusiastic about training“can do it” regardless of their economic situation.
On the other hand, he valued the “transfer of knowledge” and stressed the need for “proposals that, in dialogue with society, provide citizens with knowledge and the reliability of research.” In this sense, waited for the Biome center, already under construction, or “that meeting space in which people of all ages, and especially our young people, will ask questions, challenge ideas and opinions with an open mind and discover new horizons.
“We are faced with the new course 2024-25 willing to be those people who, through their work in service to others, eliminate barriers, foster understanding, alleviate fear and promote peace,” he concluded.
“URGENT NEED FOR CHANGES” IN THE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM
The professor of Noel Canga Nursing Faculty He gave the inaugural lecture, entitled “Creating Health Wherever Our Daily Lives Occurs,” in which he reflected on the concept of “creating health” in our daily lives. “This concept moves away from the traditional pathogenic view, that is, focused on the causes of diseases, and approaches a positive salutogenic perspective, emphasizing the origin of health and not the origin of disease,” he explained.
“Today we face problems such as loneliness, stress, obesity, poverty and addictions, which cannot be solved by a health response alone,” said Canga, who stressed that “we all have responsibilities towards our health and that of others.” our families“. For this reason, he called for assuming “a greater role, in the face of a model that has often acted and acts in a paternalistic manner.”
On the one hand, he emphasized the individual dimension oriented towards “self-care” which “must meet five essential characteristics: a balanced diet, regular physical activity, healthy sleep, avoiding risky behaviors such as tobacco and alcohol consumption and, finally, generating meaningful connections with family, friends and the community. » And, on the other hand, the contextual dimension, which involves improving domestic, educational, professional and community environments.
Regarding the health sector, Professor Christmas Canga stressed that “is going through a major crisis and the urgency of introducing changes is essential”, particularly at the first level or Primary Health Care (PHC). According to him, it is the level of care “best placed” to introduce a “new philosophy” of “health creation”, because it is “integrated into the local fabric of communities, and therefore very receptive and sensitive to their needs”. . “needs”.
In fact, he stated that “80% of the population’s health needs and problems should be covered or resolved at the first level of care; and yet, the budgets allocated to the SSP are not enough to guarantee a quality service that guarantees accessibility, equity and sustainability.” “The urgency to act is imperative because if we do not do so, the health system will not be able to face all the problems it is confronted with,” he warned.
