The head of the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, Professor Joseph Cacciottolo yesterday warned graduates about the dangers of viewing the patient as a clinical subject and not as a human being.

Prof. Cacciottolo said that medical teaching needs to be responsive to the patient as a human being, and “the fact that medicine is a caring profession that uses science should be the principle of all our teaching activities.”

“The primary interest of the medical scientist is research, and this must be encouraged and well-funded,” he said.

However, added Prof. Cacciottolo, this cannot be at the expense of teaching medical science in isolation from clinical subjects and all barriers between “pre-clinical” disciplines and “clinical” studies should be removed.

This division serves no useful purpose and may actually blur the concept of patient-centred care, he said.

Prof. Cacciottolo said that most medical instruction in the past involved didactic, and often pedantic, approaches on the part of the teacher.

It also assumed a reciprocal unquestioning acceptance of facts on the part of the student, he added.

“The teaching of medicine should, however, only minimally be concerned with imparting facts as these can be easily found on the internet and in any case, facts can rapidly change in the face of more compelling evidence,” he said.

The practice of medicine is essentially about care and compassion, and patients will only care about how much their doctor knows, after they know how much their doctor cares.

Prof. Cacciottolo spoke about the danger of seeing the patient exclusively in scientific terms and, as a result, not treated him as an ill person but in terms of deranged organs or deviations from the normal in laboratory tests.

“One of the chief reasons for taking up medical studies is the desire to heal, or at least to comfort people in need. Medical schooling, then stresses the importance of strict objectivity, clarity of evidence, and clinical neutrality. It is therefore not surprising that medical educators in many universities are concerned by the negative effect that clinical training itself may have no empathy,” he said.

He explained that empathy, in a medical context, may be described as an understanding of the patient’s perspective and emotions, together with the ability to communicate this awareness to the patient.

However, he added that the rigid medical training often causes a decline in empathy.

Prof. Cacciottolo said that empathy cannot be taught as a theoretical concept but should come about through training in interpersonal communication skills.

He suggested including the humanities as part of a doctor’s professional development such as literature, philosophy, art, music, theology and politics.

Doctor of Philosophy graduate Josette Camilleri spoke out against the lack of commitment by several members of the university lecturers.

“One problem all students have to face is the lack of commitment shown by some members of the lecturing staff. Like most professional Maltese people today, lecturers feel that the remuneration provided by the university is not enough to provide a decent standard of living compatible with people in their profession. To make up for this, they practise their profession privately to make up for the shortfall,” she said.

Dr Camilleri said that although there was some sympathy for this attitude it was unfortunately the students who have to suffer the brunt of the lack of commitment.

She also called for more research funding and hands-on experience while reading for a degree.

“Universities in Europe usually have a set structure which is usually very well funded,” she said.

Dr Camilleri pointed out that bench fees in foreign universities were excessive and seriously limited research opportunities.

“A few years ago it was prohibitive to enrol for a degree in any foreign country. The United Kingdom, a favourite country for post-graduate training by most Maltese students, used to charge an average of £22,000 a year for clinical post-graduate courses,” she said.

She went on to say that these fees were beyond the means of most students, especially because of the subsistence and accommodation expenses required.

“Working abroad is an experience where one meets scholars from other countries and other cultures and also provides the opportunity to work with people who are an authority on the subject,” said Dr Camilleri.

Doctor Of Medicine And Surgery Sponsor: Prof. G. Laferla

Monique Angele Abela, Shawn Agius, Andrew Raymond Amato-Gauci, Natalie Apap, Joyce Aquilina, Rosalie Aquilina, Muhaiyo Bartolo Hodjayeva, Claire Bellia, Michael Bonello, Victoria Bonello, Jeffrey Bonnici, Rodianne Bonnici, Charles Joseph Borg, Tessa Bugeja, Melanie Burg, Josephine Busuttil, Marvin Cachia, Denise Camilleri, Dawn Marie Caruana, Karin Caruana, Daniel Cauchi, David Cauchi, Daliso Chetcuti, Claire Cordina, Charmaine Cremona, Geraldine Darmanin, Maria Debattista, Maria Douloufaki, Adam Falzon, David Falzon, Stephanie Falzon, Denise Formosa, Karl Galea, Glenn Garzia, Lynn Grech, Stephanie Guillaumier, Charleen Lia, Jonathan Mamo, Andre Mercieca, Glen Micallef, Josef Mifsud, Martina Muscat, Nikolai Paul Pace, Andrea Parascandalo, Chantelle Manuela Portelli, Matthew Psaila, Joana Pereira M Raposo De Almeida, Carlo Refalo, Matthew Sammut, Kurstein Nicholas Sant, John Schembri, Neville Spiteri, Viktoriya Tkachenko, Kristelle Vassallo, Bernice Vella, Margrethe Von Tangen, Josef Zahra, Christian Zammit, Paul Zammit, Julian Zammit Maempel.

Master Of Science

Sponsor: Prof. G. Laferla

Bernard Bezzina, Joseph Borg, Cristina Chircop Micallef, Rebecca Felice, Dolerita Mifsud, Karen Muscat, Antonella Sammut, Ethel Vento Zahra.

Master Of Philosophy

Sponsor: Prof. G. Laferla

Maria Aloysia Abela

Master Of Arts In Theology

Sponsor: Rev. Prof. E. Agius

Maria Pia Attard, Wayne Azzopardi, Anthony Borg, Dorianne Buttigieg, Mariella Chetcuti, Isabelle Pisani.

Master Of Arts In Theology And Human Studies

Sponsor: Rev. Prof. E. Agius

Catherine Bonello, Patrick Augustine Umanah, Rita Vella Brincat

Licentiate In Sacred Theology

Sponsor: Rev. Prof. E. Agius

Reuben Gauci, Hayden Williams*

Master Of Science In Agricultural Sciences

Sponsor: Dr G. Attard

Darren Borg, Ivan Camilleri

Master Of Science

Sponsor: Dr S. Camilleri

Adriana Bartolo, Erica Scerri

Master Of Health Science

Sponsor: Dr S. Buttigieg

Lawrence Bonavia, Lucienne Brincat, Raphael Camilleri, James Carabott, Vincent Cassar, Anne Cini, Claire Farrugia, Josephine Farrugia Salem, Christina Maria Grima, Josephine Mercieca, Paul Micallef, Marija Montebello, Anthony Scerri, Maria Sciberras, Catherine Vassallo, Tiziana Vassallo, Louise Xerri,

Master Of Gerentology And Geriatrics

Sponsor: Prof. Joseph Troisi

Mary Lourdes Grech

Doctor Of Philosophy

Sponsor: Prof. G. Laferla

Stephanie Bezzina Wettinger, Steve Bonello, Anthony Fenech, Karen Sapienza, Christopher Vidal.

Doctor Of Philosophy

Sponsor: Dr S. Camilleri

Josette Camilleri

* In Absentia