The Vice-Chancellor of Igbinedion University, Okada (IUO), Prof. Lawrence Ikechukwu Ezemonye, has charged 65 newly qualified medical doctors of the institution to put patients’ welfare above personal interests, declaring that medicine is a calling to humanity and not merely a profession.
Ezemonye gave the charge on Monday at the university’s 21st Oath-Taking and Induction Ceremony, urging the new doctors to uphold the sanctity of human life, professional integrity, confidentiality, compassion and ethical responsibility.
“Patients will trust you with their lives. Families will depend on your decisions. Communities will look up to you for hope and healing,” he said.
The Vice-Chancellor stressed the importance of humility, teamwork and lifelong learning, noting that modern healthcare requires effective collaboration among doctors, nurses, pharmacists, laboratory scientists and other professionals. He said Nigeria particularly needs doctors who are “competent, innovative, ethical and compassionate” and capable of improving healthcare delivery, research and public health outcomes.
“Medicine is not merely a profession; it is a calling. It is a commitment to serve humanity at its most vulnerable moments,” he declared.
Delivering the induction lecture, titled “Take A Bow,” renowned Otorhinolaryngologist and Public Health Professional, Prof. Titus Sunday Ibekwe, urged the doctors to embrace medicine as a lifelong commitment to service, humility, gratitude and continuous growth. Using three bows as symbols, he asked 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 are still becoming.
“The white coat is not a crown. It is closer to a towel,” Ibekwe declared, stressing that leadership in medicine begins with service. He warned the doctors against allowing professional status to overshadow their responsibility to humanity, urging them to acknowledge what they do not know and remain committed to continuous learning. His central charge was: “Keep learning. Keep listening. Keep kneeling. Keep becoming.” He further warned that “the day you stop bowing is the day you begin to decline.”
Also speaking, Chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Edo State Branch, Dr. Andrew Eigbedion, called on the Federal Government and the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) to urgently double Housemanship slots for newly qualified doctors. He warned that increasing admission into Medicine and Surgery without corresponding expansion of Housemanship capacity could create another bottleneck for medical graduates.
Eigbedion urged the new doctors to help address Nigeria’s healthcare challenges, including manpower shortages, inadequate infrastructure, rising costs, preventable diseases and health-worker migration. He also advised them to embrace artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies without losing the human touch.
“Nigeria is counting on you—not merely to inherit its healthcare system, but to help transform it,” he said.
The Provost, College of Health Sciences, IUO, Prof. Dominic Osaghae, mni, urged the inductees to “heal with competence, serve with humility, lead with courage and uphold the honour of the medical profession.”
He described medicine as both a science and a calling, charging the doctors to protect confidentiality, seek help when necessary and pursue lifelong learning, research and professional development. He also urged the Adefesoye graduating class to return to IUO as specialists, researchers, teachers and leaders to strengthen the institution and Nigeria’s healthcare system.
The Ag. Dean, School of Clinical Medicine, Dr. Mrs. Imesidayo O. Eboreime-Oikeh, described the title “Doctor” as a public trust demanding sound judgment, accountability and humanity. She urged the inductees to allow evidence, professional discipline and compassion to guide their practice, reminding them that the Physician’s Pledge must remain their moral anchor, particularly when no one was watching.
“Character is what remains when there is no audience,” she declared.
The ceremony climaxed with the administration of the Physician’s Pledge and taking of the Bow, followed by the presentation of licences and certificates to the 65 inductees by the Registrar, MDCN, Dr. Fatima Kyari, who was represented by the Assistant Registrar and Head of Department, Medical Registration, Dr. Tijani Alimandaka.
