- Esther Ajayi, 80 others inducted as doctors
By Adeola Ogunlade
The Provost of Lagos State College of Medicine, (LASUCOM), Prof. Abiodun Adewuya has advised doctors to be patriotic and not forsake their country for opportunities abroad.
Adewuya said this recently at the 18th induction of new doctors and dental practitioners of LASUCOM. The event which was held at the school auditorium had government representatives, medical doctors, academia and regulatory body. 81 students were inducted as doctors and dental practitioners.
Adewuya made this appeal against the growing numbers of medical doctors traveling abroad for greener pastures noted that the Nigeria government has invested so much in producing doctors for the teeming population and thus is incumbent on the doctors to reciprocate the gestures by staying back to serve the country.
He said “For that certificate that you used to get that job in United Kingdom was given to you practically free by the Nigerian government who rather invested in training you and not take the option of not training you just like UK is doing as they often wait to import doctors from Ghana, Nigeria and use the money to pay doctors.
“It takes a lot to train one doctor. And Nigeria already invested heavily in training doctors. Now, those other countries take our doctors because they don’t want to invest in training. They rather wait. Instead of pumping maybe one billion dollars in establishing a new medical school, they wait to take in our graduates.
“Nigeria has done more for you than what Britain has done for us. That’s what people don’t understand. So, you are in Nigeria here, you train to become a doctor. Maybe you spend less than one thousand dollars. Your own colleague in UK, who is a UK citizen, cannot afford to study medicine in UK. Her own country cannot afford to train her for free”.
“We can’t stop doctors from migrating if they want to, but always remember the country that trained you, the institution that trained you, so that when you go over there, when you learn what you’re supposed to learn, come back and contribute to your country”, he said.
In her words, one of the newly inductees, the daughter of the Director Environmental Health/ Occupational Health and Safety, Dr. Ajayi Theophilus, Dr Ajayi Esther, said that Medicine to her is a calling. “I love taking care of people around me. I hope to do great things around public health and sustainable environment for all”.
“It’s a privilege to be a medical doctor and I hope that I can take care of patients and make a difference in the healthcare field”, she said.
Ajayi further said that she is elated because the newly inducted doctors are full of talents, potential and patriotic doctors who are committed toward advancing health care practice in Nigeria.
She lamented the recent incidents of cholera in Lagos, stressed that more awareness and enlightenment campaign around proper hygiene must be stepped up by the state, especially in unreached communities spread across the state.
He advised residents in Lagos to stay safe, maintain proper hygiene, wash your hands regularly and watch when and where we buy our food.