Ho, April 18, GNA – A total of 103 students from the Schools of Medicine and Pharmacy of the University of Health and Allied Sciences (UHAS) has been inducted into clinical training as part of their studies.
66 students from the School of Medicine, and 37 from the School of Pharmacy were ceremoniously donned the white coats of the medical practice by their mentors, and were also adorned with the stethoscope; the profession’s prime instrument of probe.
Both groups took oaths binding their respective fields of practice.
Professor John Owusu Gyapong, Vice Chancellor (VC) of the University, said students should help maintain the good name the University owned in the field of practice.
“You must respect the brand. It is so important so that nobody would bring the brand into disrepute,” he said.
The VC asked the students to consider the clinical years as an apprenticeship and attain the most from their mentors.
He described the School of Pharmacy as among faculties whose establishment tested the strengths of the University’s organization, and said it was an experiment of faith that vindicated those who said it could be done.
Prof. Francis Werner Ofei, Associate professor at the School of Medical Sciences at the University of Cape Coast, who was the guest speaker, said the oath remained the most important part of the ceremony, as it helped maintain professionalism in the health service.
He noted however that professionalism in the health care sector was “quickly eroding”, and said students seem to soon forget their calling to the profession.
Prof. Ofei appealed to faculty and students to stick to the terms of the profession as prescribed by the health regulatory bodies, and cautioned against profit interests and modernities that had the potential to mitigate the delivery of universal health care.
Students of the two Schools presented citations to members of their faculties to honour their contributions to their training.
Source: Ghana News Agency