The Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) Monday recommended that only doctorate degree holders in the health sector should exclusively use the title of doctor.

It called for the amendment of the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) to end the use of the title of doctor for all categories of medical practitioners.

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This, according to it, was because, in the health sector, doctor-based programmes are “professional degrees and not doctorate.”

The JOHESU stated this position in its recommendations on the proposed MDCN Act 2020 submitted to the National Assembly, a copy of the memo was made available to Daily Trust.

It noted that “the Ph.D. or Doctor of Philosophy is the highest graduate degree awarded by universities and in the most ideal of situations remain the cadre that should use the title Dr. exclusively.”

In the recommendation, JOHESU called for the amendment of Section 42(1), which says “Subject to subsection (4) of this section, no person other than a registered medical practitioner shall (b) take or use the title of physician, surgeon, doctor or licentiate of medicine, medical practitioner, or apothecary.

Also, sector 42(2) said, “Subject to section (4) of this section, no person other than a registered dental surgeon shall (b) take or use the title of a dental surgeon, doctor, dentist, dental officer or dental practitioner.”

But JOHESU is seeking the amendment of section 42(1) b to read (b) “take or use the title of physician, surgeon or licentiate of medicine or medical practitioner.”

It also wants section 42(2) b to read, “Take or use the title of a dental surgeon, dentist, dental officer or dental practitioner.”

Daily Trust reports that if the recommendation is approved, the title of doctor for all medical practitioners would be abolished while only those who have bagged doctorate in their respective disciplines would be addressed as ‘Doctor.”

https://dailytrust.com/only-ph-d-holders-in-health-sector-should-bear-doctor-johesu

Only in Nigeria. Jokers!

Of course.

Johesu and their grudges for Nigerian doctors. This is a very dumb move. Graduates of medicine re called doctors worldwide.
The national assembly won't even bother addressing this piece of trash.

Bunch of hungry jokers

This can happen only in Nigeria

What the heck is wrong with JOHESU for goodness sake?
What is all these chasing of whirlwind for? Can these lot take a back sit?

Somebody said if johesu had a way, they would ban the study of medicine in Nigeria.

Doctor of medicine can continue to be used to address graduates of medicine and dentistry. My only problem is its USE should not be attributed to one profession in the medical field. Many medical courses outside of medicine and surgery, offer Doctorate programs both locally and globally, as such those professionals are to be legally addressed as Doctors.

But in Nigeria, progress is hard to come by because we love our reality the way it is. Innovation and changing world view is not our opium, we like what we are already accustomed too.
It will become a nuisance for a Doctor in the medical field, who is not a medical doctor by profession to always correct patients and relatives when he correctly addresses himself as a doctor because he is misunderstood to be either of MBBS or Dentistry, or when he introduces himself as a Doctor in a medical seminar or clinical meeting and MEDICAL DOCTORS mistake him to be one of them. His name tag on his clinical coat will simply read DR. XY. Only the badge on his clinical coat will signify his profession.

To mitigate this in my opinion, I feel the type of doctor has to be clarified when introducing ones profession to other medical professionals and to the public. Eg. I am a MEDICAL DOCTOR, I am a DOCTOR of PHARMACY, I am a DOCTOR of PHYSIOTHERAPY etc, otherwise using the term Doctor alone will create alot of confusion and avoidable problems.

Heykims

onlyfacts:
Doctor of medicine can continue to be used to address graduates of medicine and dentistry. My only problem is its USE should not be attributed to one profession in the medical field. Many medical courses outside of medicine and surgery, offer Doctorate programs both locally and globally, as such those professionals are to be legally addressed as Doctors.

But in Nigeria, progress is hard to come by because we love our reality the way it is. Innovation and changing world view is not our opium, we like what we are already accustomed too.
It will become a nuisance for a Doctor in the medical field, who is not a medical doctor by profession to always correct patients and relatives when he correctly addresses himself as a doctor because he is misunderstood to be either of MBBS or Dentistry, or when he introduces himself as a Doctor in a medical seminar or clinical meeting and MEDICAL DOCTORS mistake him to be one of them. His name tag on his clinical coat will simply read DR. XY. Only the badge on his clinical coat will signify his profession.

To mitigate this in my opinion, I feel the type of doctor has to be clarified when introducing ones profession to other medical professionals and to the public. Eg. I am a MEDICAL DOCTOR, I am a DOCTOR of PHARMACY, I am a DOCTOR of PHYSIOTHERAPY etc, otherwise using the term Doctor alone will create alot of confusion and avoidable problems.

Heykims

For where.


This is what they will never do.

Instead of creating waves in their own fields they are eyeing another person's title.


No need I think I read they've thrown out their application. Lol

The rate at which the health profession is being undermined (knowingly and unkowingly) by members belonging to NMA is alarming

It has now become the practice in almost every private hospital or clinic owned or runned by Medical doctors to have a FULL STAFF of road side quacks with PROFESSIONAL TITLES that should have been earned in school.

You find mostly girls who have just completed their secondary being employed into a private clinic or hospital, just after a few months bearing PROFESSIONAL TITLES like NURSE. This is wrong and undermines the NOBLE NURSING PROFESSION and PROFESSIONALS. This only happens in NIGERIA, it is not best global practice in medicine.

You find the same in the PHARMACY run by private hospitals and clinics. Pharmacist technician or any other science course or someone even lower can be employed to serve as a PHARMACIST AND ADDRESSED AS ONE. This is wrong and continues to undermine the noble profession of PHARMACY. This can only happen in Nigeria and not according to international best practice.

Same can be said of the position of MEDICAL LABORATORY SCIENTIST amongst others in the private clinics and hospitals run by most medical doctors.


There are LAWS prohibiting this illegal use of professional titles but in Nigeria the problem lies not with the LAW(sometimes with it) but with the ability to PROSECUTE based on the law. If this individuals posing as health professionals where to do it on their own they will be locked up in jail but under the "guise" of being under the supervision of a medical doctor this illegality is perpetuated continuously without recourse because the Nigerian faulty system has allowed it so. The councils who are to prosecute this impringment of the law are all under the supervision of the ministry of health. The ministry of health on the other hand wont address such issues because it's a sources of cheap labour for its members, NMA members that is.

No other health professional can open a hospital or clinic with the required paper work and other legalities been meet and employ JUST anyone to serve as a "MEDICAL DOCTOR". This is because by training only a doctor who has passed all his exams in medical school and completed his housemanship can be employed as a MEDICAL DOCTOR, not even an MBBS or DENTISTRY Drop out.

But imagine if through some shadiness that was possible, imagine how it would undermine the noble profession of MEDICINE and the health of Nigerians. Now inturn imagine how this continuous action is undermining the noble profession of other professional health workers, even today.

That undermining is still going on with regards DOCTORATE HOLDERS of other medical courses aside MBBS and DENTISTRY from not fully realizing their potential in the health sector. Most pharmacist in UNIBEN graduate with a DOCTOR of PHARMACY DEGREE, they know in Nigeria the law as at today wont accept their Doctorate degree or even pay the wages of a Doctor of pharmacy, so they simply travel to the USA, writes their council exams, pass and get employed to work as DOCTOR of Pharmacy in hospitals, clinics, community etc. As we speak their are going out in their numbers, hardly do they waste their time in Nigeria unless they lack the necessary funds.

The DOCTORATE COURSES of other medical professionals are being questioned in Nigeria today, many who have them and who have the funds simply just fly abroad, pass their council exam and start working with those same doctorate degrees.

As much as I believe some elements of the leadership of JOHESU and even some of its members may have dubious plans towards the NMA, to trivialise their struggles in the face of actual facts and realities is to blind ourselves to the truth. Elements too in the NMA and its members are also against the collective welfare of a better health sector for all health workers.

Like the saying goes, their are 3 sides to a story. Your side, my side and the truth. The TRUTH is the ONLY SIDE that is of lasting benefit here and to see the truth is to look at matters from all sides. It will be most benevolent, if for the sake of truth we pick its side.

Armadeo, I hope you saw how waves have been created in their fields too, with quacks?

Heykims

If medical doctors start calling themselves "useless idiots" , I tell you in 5 years time there will be a lawsuite demanding that all JOHESU members be allowed to answer "useless idiot". So far as patients come to hospital to see the medical doctors, change of nomenclature will not stop it but rather cause confusion until people begin to understand whatever new name the medics go by.

allycat:
If medical doctors start calling themselves "useless idiots" , I tell you in 5 years time there will be a lawsuite demanding that all JOHESU members be allowed to answer "useless idiot". So far as patients come to hospital to see the medical doctors, change of nomenclature will not stop it but rather cause confusion until people begin to understand whatever new name the medics go by.

Is it REALLY TRUE patients come to the hospital to see the medical doctor, like they were paying the doctor a friendly visit? OR is that they came to the hospital to get well?

The answer is the later. In receiving treatment the patients sees a lot of different health care practitioners before seeing the medical doctor, if anything goes wrong during those steps (eg a wrong patient file is given to a patient, inaccurate or wrong vitals are taken, wrong test results are given etc), when the patient gets to the medical doctor, the doctor will work with those results and the end result may be disastrous for the patient. Even post consultation with the medical doctor, if during prescribing the wrong drug selection is made, or dose, or their is drug-drug or drug-disease interaction and the pharmacist doesn't identify those problems with their knowledge of pharmacotherapy, then the patient goes home even worse and it can even lead to death.

Like I said the patient goes to the hospital to get well, the hospital is a hazardous environment and not a place to "meet and greet with the doctor", and a patient doesnt just get better by seeing a doctor - if those working before the doctor do a sloppy job the doctor unknowingly will work with that, and if the medical doctor and the others working after him like the pharmacist and physiotherapist do a sloppy job then the patient doesnt get any better. That is why GOOD HEALTH of a patient after the hospital visit is attributed to ALL HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS (and not just medical doctors alone) who the patient came in contact with and who did their jobs as was required.

As for the issue of the use of either professional Doctorate titles or academic doctorate titles the SIMPLE ANSWER is this: LET ANY WHO HAVE EARNED THEIR DOCTORATE THROUGH ACCREDITED COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES (IN NIGERIA OR OUTSIDE NIGERIA) BEAR THE DOCTOR TITLE AS IT IS OBTAINABLE IN EVERY FUNCTIONAL COUNTRY. THE DOCTOR TITLE IS NOT THE PROPERTY OF ANY PROFESSION GLOBALLY, IT IS RATHER EARNED THROUGH PROFESSIONAL DOCTORATE DEGREES OR THROUGH ACADEMIC DOCTORATE DEGREES. MBBS, PHYSIOTHERAPY, PHARMACY ETC FALL INTO THESE TWO CATEGORIES, SO THEY ARE ALL QUALIFIED TO BEAR THAT TITLE PROVIDED THEY HAVE ATTAINED THE DOCTORATE DEGREE IN THEIR RESPECTIVE FIELDS EITHER IN NIGERIA OR ABROAD.

I agree patients come to the hospital to get well and every member of the health team plays a part. But when you can show me patient that comes to the a general or teaching hospital to see the lab scientist or pharmacist or other health worker and will be happy to go home without seeing the doctor; I will agree with you that it is not the doctor they came to see.

Again 99% of time investigations are recommended by the doctors after they have seen the patients, taken a history, examined and made a diagnosis. Then tests are done to either confirm the diagnosis or assets the severity. If a patient walks into my consulting room and just hands me a test result or xray , I ask them to wait until I have done my bit before looking at any of those.

allycat:
I agree patients come to the hospital to get well and every member of the health team plays a part. But when you can show me patient that comes to the a general or teaching hospital to see the lab scientist or pharmacist or other health worker and will be happy to go home without seeing the doctor; I will agree with you that it is not the doctor they came to see.

Again 99% of time investigations are recommended by the doctors after they have seen the patients, taken a history, examined and made a diagnosis. Then tests are done to either confirm the diagnosis or assets the severity. If a patient walks into my consulting room and just hands me a test result or xray , I ask them to wait until I have done my bit before looking at any of those.

Since you agree the patient comes to the hospital to get well and ALL MEMBERS OF THE HEALTH TEAM PLAYS A PART IN THAT, then that's settled. In addition to what you said by coming to a hospital a patient sees virtually all health professionals, a visit wont be complete without that. A patient who sees only the doctor without going through records for their file, nurses for their checks and vitals, or even through the pharmacy to pick up their prescription drugs hasnt come to the hospital either.


As for diagnostic and lab test, you are missing the point. Be it PRIOR or AFTER CONSULTATION with a doctor, if the diagnostic and lab test are poorly done by the laboratory scientist the doctor may erroneously work with that believing its accurate. This outlines the importance of an accurate job by the MLS to aid the doctor in his diagnosis in addition with his clinical knowledge.

(PS: CASES OF PRIOR TEST DONE WITHOUT THE DOCTOR'S INPUT. A patient of low income means may be referred to a public specialist hospital or general hospital after the sick patient has either walked into a Lab, were random tests where ran by the MLS to diagnose the patients condition. On confirmation of a positive result, such patients are then referred to a public specialist hospital for management. Such conditions could be acute or chronic. At the public specialist hospital, the doctor after conducting a history (both medical and none medical) sees that the patient has some signs and symptoms similar to the condition that is been suspected but would wish to carry out further test for a differential diagnosis, but the patient is of low income means without enough money to repeat those test done recently in an outside lab or even carry out further test for a differential diagnosis. In such situation the doctor may go ahead with those lab results and start a course of treatment and fix a follow up date.)

Team work standards out in all of this. Every health professional can mess up a patient if they do their jobs wrongly but if they dont when the patient gets better, ALL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS should take the credit and not just the medical doctor.

This argument will lead us NOWHERE

A nurse and lab scientist can get a PhD and bear the doctor title, no one will beat them

But saying only PhD graduates should bear the "doctor" title is not just preposterous but laughable

Just imagine nurses in the USA bragging with doctors there

Nurses abroad go for update courses and become nurse practitioners, they would be able to consult and treat patients without seeing the doctor

But in Nigeria, Na to dey fight doctors anyhow

And I believe OAU still gives the PharmD degree, so they can be called doctors in their own right, no one will beat them

Optometrists are called doctors too because their degree says so (D.O)

The title doesn't make you who you are but your WORKS and your PASSION for the job

Even a common cleaner can be better than the almighty DOCTOR