Prof. Kanu Nkanginieme, a prominent expert in Paediatrics at the University of Port Harcourt, has disclosed that now Nigeria stands as the world’s fourth-largest nation in terms of its population of medical doctors.
Nkanginieme made this statement during his paper presentation at the 2023 Theophilus Oladipo-Ogunlesi Memorial Lecture, which was held on Thursday in Ilorin as part of the 17th Annual Scientific Conference and All Fellows’ Congress (ASCAF).
Africa Today News, New York, reveals that this group is affiliated with the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria.
His paper presentation was titled: ‘Paradigm Shifts in 21st Century Nigerian Medical Education’.
While discussing the ranking of medical professionals produced by the country, the Consultant Paediatrician highlighted the persistent contradictions afflicting the nation.
He did, however, advise on the imperative of unlocking our potential to drive positive impact and contribute to the nation, rather than being mere bystanders to developments in the practice, training, and evaluation of medicine in today’s world.
Read also: Nigeria 4th Highest Doctor Population Globally – Expert
‘State General Hospitals are understaffed while Federal Medical Centres are overstaffed.’
‘Medical consumable items get out of stocks, citizens medical out of pockets spending rises,’ he lamented.
Nkanginieme passionately called for a transformative shift from a teacher-centred approach to a self-directed, self-motivated learner-centred approach.
He suggested a departure from the conventional clinical postings lacking outcome audits, advocating instead for a structured module that quantifies clinical cognition and performance skills. This approach would establish clear individual responsibilities and hold both trainees and trainers accountable.
Additionally, he advised a transition away from assigning credit units to courses based solely on hours of lectures and practicals, advocating instead for a system that values hours of self-study and ongoing verification of proficiency in cognitive and performance skills.
He further stated that these changes would be implemented within the clinical practice modules and would extend to the quantification of credit units for medical courses.
Nkanginieme warns that ‘we cannot allow weak medical students to drive medical education in Nigeria.’
‘Because medicine involves human life, whenever learning is seen to have not occurred, complete remediation and verification of learning are called for rather than carryover.’
‘A clause should accommodate complete remediation and allow weak medical students to graduate in nine years, rather than six years, with remediation,’ he advised.