Medical Council seeks support for UDS medical school

Tamale, March 6, GNA - The Educational Committee of the Ghana Medical and Dental Council (ECGMDC) has called for greater collaboration between the Ministry of Health (MOH), the Ministry of Education (MOE), the Northern Regional Coordinating Council (RCC) and the Medical and Dental Council in the provision of infrastructure and other facilities for the University for Development (UDS) Medical School.

The committee noted that, over the years because of the lack of adequate facilities, students of the UDS medical school have had to be trained in other institutions at great cost to the university. Dr Kofi Adadey, Chairman of the Medical and Dental Council made the appeal when he led a six member committee of the Council to pay a courtesy call on Mr Stephen Sumani Nayina, the Northern Regional Minister in Tamale on Thursday.

The Committee also showed a slid of the progress of work on infrastructure development being undertaken on the campus of the UDS for the medical school, noting areas that needed urgent attention. Other members of who accompanied the Chairman of the Council included Dr. Elias Sory, Director General of the Ghana Health Service and Dr. Edward Gyader, Dean of the UDS Medical School. Dr. Adadey noted that the current structure in which the UDS medical students were being accommodated was very deplorable and said under such conditions they could not carry out their clinical practice effectively.

The Chairman of the Council said in 2007, out of 35 medical students who completed their Bachelor of Science in Human Biology and were staying at home, 31 of them were now attached to medical institutions and doing their clinical practice. Mr. Nayina said he would encourage the district assemblies in the region to put up hostels in the various campuses of the UDS to provide accommodation for the students. He also expressed concern about the low number of doctors in the region and urged all stakeholders to help address the issue by paying particular attention to the special needs of medical students, so that they would be encouraged to serve in the region upon completion of their courses.

Dr. Edward Gyader announced that the UDS would offer 20 places to the district assemblies to sponsor students to the medical school so that after completion of their training they could serve the region and the nation in general.