The Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria has warned doctors, especially newly qualified professionals, against over-reliance on Artificial Intelligence, saying it neither has the logical reasoning nor empathy they have garnered in their training.
This is as former Rivers State Governor, Dr Peter Odili, appealed to the Federal Government to review the remuneration of doctors and health workers to reduce the brain drain syndrome.
The Registrar/Chief Executive Officer of the MDCN, Prof. Fatima Kyari and Odili, spoke during the induction/oath-taking for 65 Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Science graduands of the PAMO University of Medical Sciences in Port Harcourt on Monday.
Kyari, who presided over the induction, administered the physician pledge to the graduands and urged them to be mindful of the significant impact of their contributions, saying they should not see their induction into the medical profession as an arrival at their destination, but the start of a journey.
She added, “As doctors, you don’t only use your pens. It’s not about what you know. But you also use your hands, and you also use your hearts. That is what makes your a doctors. You might be the AI generation, but you must also remember that AI is machine learning.
“The AI we have today is learning language models and machine learning. They depend on human performance being transferred to them, and on what they know.
“So don’t rely too much on AI. Think about what you can give outside the AI. AI does not have the feelings that you have. AI does not have the logical reasoning that you have. And AI does not have the empathy that you have. And that is what makes you Doctors. That gives you the influence that you have.”
The MDCN boss continued, “You must respect your team, the public, and the patients. Respect is a mutual thing. If you need respect, you give it out, noting that they have been trained by competent teachers, hence they should justify the training they have received.
“As you excel in the science of Medicine, remember to also be empathetic and caring because the patient in front of you is not thinking about who you are. What they are thinking is, is this Doctor the right person to treat me? So there is trust, and you must maintain that trust.”
In his speech, Pro-Chancellor of PAMO University of Medical Sciences, Dr Peter Odili, expressed happiness at the progress the institution has made in less than eight years of its existence.
While noting that it was the third set of Medical Doctors the institution has produced, Odili said, “PAMO in this short period of existence has added not less than 330 health care professionals, “ even as he announced a cash gift of N100,000 to each of the 65 new Doctors.
He said if other institutions in the country move at the same pace, the mass exodus of Doctors and health workers in search of greener pastures will be minimized, and therefore appealed to the federal government to review their remuneration.
According to him, “Nobody will worry about who’s running away to Japa, or whatever they call it, looking for greener pastures. If we have more than enough on the ground, you won’t miss those who go. So let me use this opportunity to thank the Rivers State Government, especially the Governor, for the initiative and the sustenance of the scholarships to our indigenous students.”
The PAMO Varsity Pro-Chancellor urged other states to emulate the Rivers government’s example because, according to him, it will lay the foundation for good health across the country.
While commending President Bola Tinubu for his ‘bo;d initiatives’ in the health sector, Odili stressed the need for special attention to the training of health professionals because they hold the key to national health. A healthy nation is a wealthy nation.
“We congratulate him and urge the federal government to invest more and also look at the review of the remuneration of health workers,” even as he thanked the MDCN Registrar for honouring the institution with her physical presence.
Earlier in his address, the acting Vice Chancellor, Prof. Smith Jaja, said the institution was inducting 65 Medical graduates into the very noble profession, saying the graduates have gone through the best training any medical graduate can receive.
He added, “These are the first medical graduates who sit for the final examinations and graduate from the PAMO Teaching Hospital.”
While charging the newly inducted Doctors to uphold the ethics of their profession, as it will be binding on them for the rest of their lives, saying, “It is not a pledge that you make frivolously.”
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