Igbinedion University, Okada (IUO), has inducted 65 newly qualified medical doctors, charging them to put patients’ welfare above personal interests and uphold the ethical obligations of the profession.
Prof. Lawrence Ezemonye, Vice-Chancellor of the university, in his remarks at the 21st Oath-Taking and Induction Ceremony of the institution on Wednesday, described medicine as a call to humanity rather than a mere profession.
Ezemonye urged the inductees to uphold 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 also stressed humility, teamwork and lifelong learning, noting that modern healthcare required effective collaboration among doctors, nurses, pharmacists, laboratory scientists and other professionals.
According to him, Nigeria needs doctors who are competent, innovative, ethical, compassionate and capable of contributing to improved 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.”
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 as symbols of the doctors’ responsibilities.
He urged 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.
“The white coat is not a crown. It is closer to a towel,” he said, stressing that leadership in medicine began with service.
He warned the doctors against allowing professional status to overshadow their responsibility to humanity.
The lecturer also urged the inductees to acknowledge what they did not know and remain committed to continuous learning.
“Keep learning. Keep listening. Keep kneeling. Keep becoming. The day you stop bowing is the day you begin to decline,” Ibekwe said.
Also speaking, Dr Andrew Eigbedion, Chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Edo Branch, called on the Federal Government and the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) to urgently 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 urged the new doctors to contribute to addressing Nigeria’s healthcare challenges, including manpower shortages, inadequate infrastructure, rising costs, preventable diseases and health-worker migration.
The NMA chairman also advised the doctors to embrace artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies while retaining the human element of medical practice.
“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, urged the inductees to “heal with competence, serve with humility, lead with courage and uphold the honour of the medical profession.”
Osaghae 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 members of the graduating class to return to IUO as specialists, researchers, teachers and leaders to strengthen the institution and Nigeria’s healthcare system.
The Acting Dean, School of Clinical Medicine, Dr Mrs Imesidayo Eboreime-Oikeh, described the title “Doctor” as a public trust requiring 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 should remain their moral anchor, particularly when no one was watching.
“Character is what remains when there is no audience,” she said.
The ceremony climaxed with the administration of the Hippocratic Oath and the taking of the bow.
This was followed by the presentation of licences and certificates to the 65 inductees.
The Registrar of the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN), Dr Fatima Kyari, was represented at the ceremony by Dr Tijani Alimandaka, Assistant Registrar and Head of Department, Medical Registration.
