By Mutalib Jibril
“Why would you call for the discontinuation of clerkship which has been in existence and functioning for years and contributing massively to the student’s academic career?” Muhammad Kabir, a professional pharmacist with over 5 years of experience rhetorically questioned the circular released by the Nigeria Medical Association.
On January 15th, 2024, the body guiding the medical students named Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) released a circular, calling for the discontinuation of the clerkship training of Pharmacy students on clinical rotations.
The statement reads, “We write to convey the directive of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) to medical and dental practitioners who are engaged in training pharmacy students on clinical rotations/clerkships. The president of NMA has directed all medical and dental practitioners engaged in this program to henceforth discontinue all such engagements with immediate effect.”
This decision has sparked concern among the medical students at Usmanu Danfodiyo University and professionals, particularly, Muhammad Kabir.
Speaking with The News Digest press, Kabir expressed his disappointment with NMA’s decision, noting that the issue to terminate the training will extend beyond the directive and will deteriorate the future of medical students in the country.
According to him, the discontinuation of clerkship will lead to some
systemic challenges within Nigeria’s healthcare sector.
In his words, he said, “Nigeria, is a country with dysfunctional policymakers, fragmented healthcare systems, and ill-informed leaders. The ordinary citizen suffers because personal interests are prioritized over national interests.
“The Nigerian Medical Association made a big mistake over the directives, and it is quite disheartening as a professional body to take such a step without notifying the responsible bodies – the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health, Nigerian Senate, and House of Representatives.”
Stressing further, Kabir expressed his concern that if professional bodies meant to be monitored are now monitoring the functions of national lawmakers, then our country is in a significant predicament.
He said, “Healthcare workers are disunited, many are dissatisfied with their jobs, and the laws monitoring them are weakly implemented, with the patients they claim to care for being the least priority. If nothing serious is done, and the NMA seals the directive made, the Nigeria healthcare system will deteriorate rapidly.
“This will put the Pharmacy students in denying access to professional collaboration with their peers. To this, the Nigerian government needs to take bold action to restructure the health sector in the country.”
Another pharmacist, Jabir Hassan, opposed the directive, stating that discontinuing pharmacy students’ involvement in clerkships would hinder the healthcare team’s ability to achieve collaborative goals. He pointed out the deep-seated professional rivalry between the NMA and other healthcare teams in hospital settings.
“I support the NMA action” – medical doctor
In an interview with a medical doctor who preferred anonymity, he expressed his support for the NMA’s action, urging that pharmacists, being specialists in pharmacy, should not participate in medical and clinical training.
The doctor expressed concerns that allowing pharmacy students to engage in medical clerkships might lead to a claim of clinical knowledge beyond their expertise.
He said, “Their constituency and area of specialty is pharmacy. They have no usurp to partake in medical and clinical internships or training because they are not medical students.
“ This will surely affect the medical student’s system for allowing Pharmacy students to be involved in a medical clerkship for treating and diagnosing patients. This kind of mischievous practice must be halted in the bud before the pharmacists cause havoc on innocent patients,” he exclaimed.
Pharmacy Students React
Abdulbaseet Yusuf, a pharmacy student at Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto explained that professionals in healthcare are in the business of saving lives, and I believe that it is one of those sectors where altruism should supersede egotism.
Speaking, Yusuf explained that the saving of lives in the modern world requires an integrated approach to achieve sustainable goals.
“I blamed the NMA for giving such directives because it will only heighten interdisciplinary rivalry and draw the sector backward. I hope that the relevant stakeholders come together soonest to resolve the matter,” he said.
Another student, Ibrahim Hossein, opposed the directive, saying that NMA appears to be driven by the animosity of personal interests rather than a commitment to teamwork and collaboration for the benefit of the system and the public.
“The order given by the NMA to me was as a result of hatred and personal interest rather than teamwork and collaboration to favor the system and public at large,” he said.