The Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN), has warned that it would not hesitate to sanction and reprimand unethical medical practices by dentists practicing in the country.
The Council’s Registrar, Dr Tajudeen Sanusi, made the threat in Enugu when he conducted the induction and swearing-in of 28 new dentists into the council at the College of Medicine, University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Ituku-Ozalla, Enugu state.
Sanusi emphasized that the primary responsibility of medical practitioners was to save lives.
He urged them not to abandon the country but always remember to return home in the event that they would travel abroad for further training.
He, therefore, urged the new inductees to conduct themselves professionally and always abide by the ethics of the profession.
Earlier, the Vice Chancellor, University of Nigeria Nsukka, Prof. Charles Igwe and the Provost of the College of Medicine of the University, Prof. Hyginus Ezegwui, charged the inductees to remain ambassadors of the institution.
They urged the graduands to follow the footsteps of their forebears who are doing well across the globe and keep building on their experiences.
Chairman of the occasion and managing director of Allied Bendix Limited, Dr. Ifeanyichukwu Okonkwo, described the graduands as a special breed of people.
“This is because you are entering the most difficult profession. You need money to practice. But you as a dentist, must have certain technological and surgical tools.
“This means you are a special breed of people. You must hoist the flag on the mountain top for others to climb,” Okonkwo said.
Meanwhile, the overall best graduating student in the Faculty of Dentistry, Miss Valentina Ebisike, was rewarded with the sum of N50,000 for her ‘unprecedented’ feat by the university.
Ebisike got the overall best graduating student award after she finished with excellence in 10 different disciplines.
Announcing the Academic Excellence Prize at the induction and swearing-in ceremony, the dean, Faculty of Dentistry, Prof. Felix Chukwuneke said the cash prize was to encourage academic excellence among students.
He said the academic feat achieved by Ebisike should be applauded by all lovers of excellence, hard work, and diligence, adding that with the award, the institution hopes to inspire other students to make excellence their cardinal objective as they go through the university.
The dean added, that some of the graduates with best academic performances would equally be considered for direct employment as had been the practice in the faculty.
He therefore charged the graduands to make the care of patients their first concern and practice medicine safely and effectively by being well informed about their patients before making decisions or taking actions that may affect them.
He told them to always be ethical and trustworthy in dealing with their patients.
“You should know that the litigation in healthcare system is rapidly increasing globally, which affords individual explanation and compensation for perceived wrong diagnosis and treatment and Nigerians are becoming conscious of their rights,” Chukwuneke said.
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