Today, I reproduce in my column the commencement address of Commissioner Lilian de las Llagas of the Commission on Higher Education to the Graduating Medicine Class of the Cagayan State University, 2018.
“The poet William Butler Yeats wrote: ‘Though the leaves are many, the root is one.’
Each and every one of you should remember that while the leaves of medicine are many, the root is one… that root is the mandatory alleviation of human suffering from illnesses and burden of disease. That patient safety is foremost and the practice of medicine should not be commercialized as humans are not commodities.
On the same vein, though the leaves of the graduating class are many, the root is only one… and that is the College of Medicine of CSU. The root is summed up in the College’s mission: The CSU College of Medicine shall produce competent, compassionate, ethical and socially responsive medical graduates who shall be health care providers, health education researcher, community leaders and social mobilizers as they practice holistic medical care.
Quid pro quo—something given or received in exchange for something else… What is given? It is the gift given to you by the Filipino people, the gift of learning as provided for by the state, as provided by the state’s constituents; the Filipino people.
Quid pro quo—something given or received in exchange for something else… What is given? It is the gift given to you by Filipino patients for they have given you the laboratory on which you can hone your skills in the art and science of medicine.
And as in any quid pro quo, there is something to be given back in exchange… and this is to live by the mission of your college. Whether you are treating individual patients as a practicing physician and being servants to each individual patient’s life and survival: or delivering into the mysteries of life as a bench health scientist; learning which therapies work best for particular diseases as a clinician researcher; or addressing the broader issues and challenges of public health, you have the opportunity and responsibility to be part of a whole that is greater than yourselves.
The word doctor comes from the Latin word “docere.” Docere means to teach. And teach you shall do; whether talking to a student of medicine or talking to a patient or his family members (or simply patient education). Each patient has his own story to tell. Let these be a teaching lesson in return.
There is nothing static about the discipline which you have chosen. The dynamism sometimes overtakes you but you have to take the reign and live up to it. Medicine is a profession of life-long learning. CME is illustrative of this, a necessity to update or enhance one’s skills in the practice of diagnosis and treatment of patients. Science and technology change so rapidly that inevitably, the knowledge and skills you have just acquired become things of the past. Innovations are often home of creative minds.
When the oceans rise, there are effects. There are effects on people living on low land areas. When there is global warming, resurgence of mosquito-borne diseases: dengue, chikungunya, malaria, and other infectious diseases arise and rise. Overpopulation causes crowding, hunger, and water shortages, and predisposes humans to poverty, insanity, and death; Be part of this.
Be leaders and agent of change of your communities, the Filipinos, and elsewhere.
Despite what you have learned about the human body, a lot of mysteries still lurk inside it, a lot of secrets yet to be uncovered. Technology, in all its unending discoveries, just hopes to keep up with the mysteries of evolving diseases. Be a curious physician, so go forth.
Do research which is translational and patient-focused. For it is for them that you have become what you are now. A pre-practitioner; and as future practitioner, be kind and compassionate to your patients, take time to show your interest in them. Do not underestimate the impact you can make on individual patients, clients, and families.
Treat your colleagues well. Treat everyone with full professionalism and respect. You are all in this, together.
Have a great ride in an automobile called Medicine.
Remember quid pro quo. You have received. It’s time to give back your best!”
rannie_aquino@csu.edu.ph
rannie_aquino@sanbeda.edu.ph
rannie_aquino@outlook.com
