Newly qualified doctors advised to uphold tenets of profession

The Deputy Minister of Health has advised newly qualified medical practitioners to live by the tenets of the profession, which enjoins them to be professional in the discharge of their duties.

“You must eschew any form of professional malpractices that could bring shame or bring the name of your profession into disrepute,” Alexander Kom Abban said.

The Oath of the Profession, among others, enjoins practitioners to practice with conscience and dignity and render dedicated services to patients without discrimination.

Mr Abban gave the advice at a ceremony, where 135 newly qualified medical and dental practitioners were inducted by the Ghana Medical and Dental Council (MDC) in Accra.

The inductees were from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, the University of Development Studies-Tamale, as well as foreign-trained doctors who sat and passed the Council’s exams.

He urged the newly inducted practitioners to be compassionate to patients and value the dictates of the Oath to enable them to deliver to the satisfaction of the citizenry.

Ghana’s successes in training quality medical and dental practitioners and other health professionals had earned her great admiration and commendation at the Commonwealth level, he said and challenged the MDC to guard these achievements to maintain the set standards.

Mr Abban, who is the Member of Parliament for Gomoa West, urged the doctors to look beyond their comfort zones to serve in rural communities, where their services were most needed, to help bridge the rural-urban gap.

He expressed concern about the mass exit of medical and other health professionals to seek greener pasture in Europe and the United States and urged all stakeholders to jointly holistically address the trend.

It is estimated that about 4,000 doctors and 20,000 nurses have left the country since 1996.

About 1500 doctors are currently living in New York.

Mr Abban, therefore, urged doctors to be committed to their jobs and be responsible, diligent, and work as teamwork to improve quality healthcare services.

Professor Paul Kwame Nyame, Chairman of the Board of Medical and Dental Council, encouraged the inductees to aim at upgrading their knowledge informally recognised postgraduate medical institutions to be abreast of the trend of their practice.

They should also exhibit a high level of confidentiality in dealing with the patients as enshrined in the medical code of practice.

''In this stage of smartphones and other gadgets, you need to ensure that information about patients or clients is kept confidential to build the trust and confidence of the public. he said.

He said the Board was working with the Medical and Dental schools to address the challenges towards the successful delivery of healthcare.

''Work with like-minded citizens to ensure that potable water is provided in your community, be advocates in ensuring that sanitation is a priority in their community,” he said.

These two interventions when implemented successfully, he said, would bring under control many of the endemic diseases in the country.

Dr Eric Asamoah, a former President of Ghana Dental Association, advised the doctors to show compassion to their patients, saying, "You need to be kind and have a sympathetic eye for them".