EKSU COLLEGE OF MEDICINE CLINICAL ORIENTATION: PROFESSOR OLOFINBIYI BABATUNDE ADVOCATES URGENT INTEGRATION OF MENTORSHIP INTO MEDICAL TRAINING
The newly admitted clinical students (400L Medicine &Surgery) of the Ekiti State University College of Medicine have been challenged to embrace mentorship as a vital tool for academic excellence, professional growth, and personal development as they begin their highly esteemed clinical training.
The charge was delivered during the Orientation Week lecture titled “Gaining Academic and Professional Skills through Mentorship”, presented on 16 January 2026 by Prof Olofinbiyi Babatunde Ajayi, Professor of Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Adolescent Reproductive Health/Public Health Physician and Chairman, Senate Committee on University Ranking.
Addressing the realities of Nigerian clinical training (high patient loads, limited resources, burnout, intense medicolegal pressure), Prof. Olofinbiyi described mentorship as “not a luxury, but a necessity,” stressing that success in medicine depends on guidance, humility, respect for hierarchy, and understanding institutional culture. He explained that mentorship in Nigeria goes beyond textbooks to include patient communication, ethical practice, teamwork, and navigating complex health systems.
The professor outlined the need for a broad “mentor ecosystem”, including academic, professional, peer, human relations, medical deportment, vocational, and administrative mentors, noting that no single mentor can meet all developmental needs. He also commended the orientation planning committee for introducing mentorship into the school’s clinical orientation programme, describing it as a critical gap in the traditional medical curriculum.
Professor Olofinbiyi stressed that “the urgent integration of structured mentorship into the clinical arm of Nigerian medical education is no longer optional but a critical curricular and pedagogical reform. Mentorship, he noted, must be deliberately embedded within the training system to produce competent, ethical, resilient, and globally relevant doctors, adding that this innovation deserves institutional adoption, documentation, and visibility”.
The lecture was warmly received by students. One of the new entrants, Ademiluyi Olanrewaju Adesola, said, “The orientation lecture on mentorship has been the most interesting lecture in my medical education journey; very eye-opening and brilliant. May God bless you, sir.”
In a thought-provoking charge that broadened the students’ vision of what a medical career can be, Professor Olofinbiyi challenged them to look beyond the traditional consulting room and embrace the vast opportunities medicine offers. He noted that many doctors ultimately find deeper impact and fulfilment in public health, health policy, ICT-driven medicine (including artificial intelligence, AI), research, innovation, and the social and advocacy arms of healthcare.
The session set an inspiring tone for the students’ transition into clinical medicine, showcasing mentorship as a cornerstone of professional success.
Office of Research and Development (ORD), EKSU
Senate Committee on University Ranking, EKSU