Igbinedion University, Okada (IUO), has inducted 65 newly qualified medical doctors, urging them to prioritise patients’ welfare and uphold the ethical responsibilities of the profession.
The Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof. Lawrence Ezemonye, gave the charge at the 21st Oath-Taking and Induction Ceremony on Wednesday, describing medicine as a calling to humanity rather than merely a profession.
Ezemonye urged the inductees to uphold human life, professional integrity, confidentiality, compassion and ethical responsibility, while stressing the importance of humility, teamwork and lifelong learning.
He said modern healthcare required effective collaboration among doctors, nurses, pharmacists, laboratory scientists and other professionals, adding that Nigeria needed competent, innovative and ethical doctors capable of improving healthcare delivery, research and public health outcomes.
Delivering the induction lecture, titled “Take A Bow”, Prof. Titus Ibekwe, an otorhinolaryngologist and public health professional, urged the new doctors to embrace medicine as a lifelong commitment to service, humility, gratitude and continuous learning.
Ibekwe used three bows to symbolise their responsibilities, urging them to “bow back” in gratitude to parents, teachers and mentors, “bow down” in service to patients and humanity, and “bow forward” towards the professionals they were still becoming.
He said, “The white coat is not a crown. It is closer to a towel,” stressing that leadership in medicine began with service.
The Chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association, Edo Branch, Dr Andrew Eigbedion, called on the Federal Government and the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria to increase housemanship slots for newly qualified doctors.
Eigbedion warned that expanding admission into Medicine and Surgery without a corresponding increase in housemanship capacity could create another bottleneck for medical graduates.
He also urged the doctors to help address Nigeria’s healthcare challenges, including manpower shortages, inadequate infrastructure, rising costs, preventable diseases and health-worker migration.
The Provost, College of Health Sciences, IUO, Prof. Dominic Osaghae, urged the inductees to “heal with competence, serve with humility, lead with courage and uphold the honour of the medical profession.”
The Acting Dean, School of Clinical Medicine, Dr Imesidayo Eboreime-Oikeh, described the title “Doctor” as a public trust requiring sound judgment, accountability and humanity.
The ceremony climaxed with the administration of the Hippocratic Oath, the taking of the bow and the presentation of licences and certificates to the 65 inductees.
The Registrar of the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, Dr Fatima Kyari, was represented by Dr Tijani Alimandaka, Assistant Registrar and Head of Department, Medical Registration.
