UWI medical graduates urged to 'put patients before profits'

VALEDICTORIAN of the Faculty of Medical Sciences 2024, Selena Deochand says the world needs more than just brilliant minds, it needs compassionate hearts.

Speaking at the UWI St Augustine 2024 graduation ceremony of the Faculty of Medical Sciences at the UWI Sport and Physical Education Centre on October 26, Deochand said kindness, empathy and care were necessary for those in the medical profession.

She said the covid19 pandemic forced them to understand what it really meant to be in the medical sciences and she believed the challenges ahead would test all they had learned. She said resilience might carry them through difficulties but compassion would shape their legacy.

“It would have been easier, perhaps understandable, to choose a different path – one with less risk, fewer demands and more predictability. But we didn’t take that route. Instead, we chose to stay. Why?

“We chose to stay because we knew this profession isn’t about what we gain, but rather what we give.”

The pharmacist said what mattered was the lives they touched, the people or animals they helped and the impact they made. She said they had to be “champions for equity” as it was not enough for health care to exist but it had to be ethical, patient-centred and accessible to all.

“Let us remember that our light is strongest when it shines for others, when it serves, uplifts and heals. The world needs us now more than ever, so remain committed to putting patients before profits, innovation over complacency and integrity above all else.”