Increase student intake - Minister appeals to medical schools
The Minister of Education, Professor Nana Jane Opoku-Agyeman, has appealed to medical schools to increase their intake of qualified applicants.
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She noted that owing to the limited admission, most qualified applicants who are not admitted into Ghanaian schools travelled outside the country to study medicine, which imposed a difficult financial situation on such students.
“Let us use more innovative ways of ensuring that more students who qualify to study medicine are given the opportunity to study in Ghana than going abroad,” she said.
Prof. Opoku-Agyeman made the appeal at the 47th congregation and the second oath-swearing and induction ceremony of the University of Cape Coast’s (UCC’s) School of Medical Sciences (SMS).
Forty-six student doctors graduated after completing a six-year course in Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery.
Prof. Opoku-Agyeman said although there were few medical schools in the country, they could increase their intake.
Doctor-patient ratio
Professor Opoku-Agyeman expressed worry about the doctor-patient ratio in the country and stressed that any intervention to bridge the gap would be welcomed by the government.
According to Ghana Health Service’s figures, the patient to doctor ratio is one doctor to 5,259 patients a year.
“Any effort to bridge this gap is, therefore, wholly welcome. In this regard, I wish to reiterate the government’s commitment to supporting the medical schools and similar institutions to achieve their highest potential,” she said.
The Chancellor of UCC, Dr Sam Jonah, who also addressed the congregation, talked about the need for opportunities to be created for more students to pursue medicine as a career.
He pointed out that many students with good grades did not make it to medical schools in the country because of the intake limits.
Dr Jonah expressed worry about the limited medical schools in the country and described the situation as an obstacle that prevented many people from realising their dreams of becoming medical practitioners.
Advice
He advised the graduating doctors not to make money their priority but to seek the wellbeing of their patients first.
“Do not let financial gains guide your actions because it is impossible to be successful as a doctor without having the improvement of your patient’s condition as your consideration”, he emphasised.
For his part, the Vice-Chancellor of the university, Professor D.D. Kuupole, said the aim of establishing the university’s medical school in September 2009 was to help address the “poor patient-doctor ratio” in the country.
Prof. Kuupole said in order to increase the intake of students; the university had plans to open more clinical training sites in other parts of the country.
The Chairman of the Medical and Dental Council (MDC) of Ghana, Dr Eric Asamoah, advised the graduating doctors to adhere to all the ethics of the medical profession.