Medical students to spend seven years in school – NUC

The National Universities Commission has described as
erroneous and misleading the news making the round that
Nigerian medical students will now spend 11 years to obtain
their first degree.
Its head of information department, Mrs. Adebukola Olatunji,
clarified in a statement on Monday that medical students will
only spend seven years in school rather than 11 years which
was widely reported in the news.
Olatunji said newsmen misrepresented the NUC’s Executive
Secretary, Prof. Julius Okojie, who was quoted to have
announced the 11-year training period for medical students
while giving the keynote address at the matriculation and
inauguration of the University of Medical Sciences, Ondo, on
March 12, 2016.
She said nowhere in the keynote address entitled,
“Development of Medical Education in Nigeria: Prospects and
Challenges,” was 11 years mentioned or implied.
According to Olatunji, what Okojie explained was that the
NUC’s basic minimum academic standard for Medicine and
Surgery had been reviewed such that anyone wishing to study
Medicine and Surgery and Dentistry will first have to study
any of the four-year basic medical science courses such as
Anatomy, Medical Biochemistry and Physiology before
proceeding to the clinical training that would run for three
years.
She said, “Although, the so-called ‘11-year Medical
Programme’ stories have been credited to the Commission’s
Executive Secretary, Prof. Julius Okojie’s keynote address
titled, ‘Development of Medical Education in Nigeria:
Prospects and Challenges’, which was delivered at the
Matriculation and Inauguration of the University of Medical
Sciences, Ondo, on Saturday, March 12, 2016, nowhere in
that lecture was 11 years mentioned or implied.
“Prof. Okojie, who was represented by the Deputy Executive
Secretary l, Prof. Chiedu Mafiana, had explained that the new
curriculum provides for a seamless seven-year programme.
“With the new curriculum, a medical student would be
expected to graduate in Basic Medical Sciences, with options
in Anatomy, Medical Biochemistry and Physiology in the first
four years, before proceeding for the clinical training that
would run for three years.
“Prof. Okojie had further explained that the reviewed BMAS
went through a long process, which included wide
consultations with the academia, professional associations and
regulatory bodies, following the conduct of a market needs
assessment.
“According to him, the consensus was that medical training
should be post-graduate. The main goal is to ensure that the
crop of graduates emerging from the programme are
psychologically matured to practice, with a high level of
competency.”
Olatunji said NUC’s new basic minimum academic standard
not only retained the fundamental learning objectives of the
six-year programme and the national development goals for
health in the country, it also retained the international outlook
to guarantee global competitiveness.
She said, “While noting that the extant six-year programme
shall continue to subsist for a period to be determined, Prof.
Okojie observed that attempts had been made over the years
to run medical programme using course credit system and that
the hallmark of the new document is that it clearly apportions
credit weightings to all the courses and activities.”