Cassar urges medical students to embody medical responsibilities

Health Minister Joe Cassar urged medical students to approach their professional training and preparation as "not merely fit for a job as a doctor, which you will clock in and out of, for a number of hours, five or six times a week".

The Health Minister advised them instead to "focus on developing into individuals who are fit for a profession, [and] whose obligations and responsibilities you will "wear" consistently and constantly."

Cassar was speaking during the annual training and resource development weekend organised by the Malta Medical Students Association for its members.

Cassar said that, in the course of his work as a minister, "I also do encounter various unfavourable experiences. Each one is simply one to many!"

While not going into detail of what he meant by "unfavourable experiences", Cassar added simply that these "stem from failings of doctors to truly understand, embrace and shoulder their responsibilities and obligations all the time, even when they are at home, when tired, when stressed, when happy and socialising, when partying."

Cassar said that his emphasis comes in the light of such "unfavourable experiences", and urged medical students to channel their training and development "towards the reality that becoming a doctor is not taking up a job."

"Becoming a doctor means joining a profession characterised by specific obligations and responsibilities - encompassed in the Hippocratic Oath - and such obligations and responsibilities are to be shouldered by all, always and everywhere," Cassar stressed.

Cassar also pledged that, as a minister, he would continue to support medical students, their medical training, and their development into doctors in any way he can.

Cassar also emphasised the hard work that "conscientious doctors in our community" and said that these are often "the first port of call of members of our society."

He also referred to the work carried out by the medical profession in the field of medical research and the academic sphere.

"I will take the opportunity to harp about their exemplary performance as doctors and to thank them for the inspiration they offer to all of us," Cassar said.