Apollo Institute of Medical Sciences & Research hosts ‘White Coat Ceremony’ to welcome the Class of 2022 students!
Hyderabad, 30th January 2023: Apollo Institute of Medical Sciences & Research, Hyderabad; hosted the White Coat Ceremony, for the Class of 2022 students, at the RNR Auditorium, Jubilee Hills, today. Chief Guest Dr. Uma Sekar, Vice Chancellor, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research, Chennai; presented the White Coats to students on the occasion. Dr. A Rekha, Dean, AIMSR; Ms. Aparna Reddy, COO, AIMSR; along with the faculty from the Institute and parents of students, were present at the momentous occasion.
The White Coat Ceremony is a memorable occasion for the students as they take their first steps into the medical college, entering the noble medical profession. One hundred and fifty students of the 2022 batch of the Apollo Institute of Medical Sciences & Research, were welcomed into the medical fraternity by the faculty and were ceremonially “cloaked” with their white coats. The students dressed elegantly in white later took the Hippocrates oath.
Dr. Uma Sekar addressing the young students entering the medical profession said, the practice of medicine is a call in which your heart will be exercised equally with your brain. As Medicine made the transition to become more scientific and evidence-based in the last century, the physicians sought to project themselves as scientists and symbolize that they were scientists led to medical doctors wearing white coats. The curriculum framed for medical education in the last century embraced scientific knowledge, which in turn defined the ethos of the physician and led to wearing a white coat way back in 1915. The white coat ceremony signifies the students’ right of passage and the first proper white coat ceremony for students was held in 1993 and they were administered the Hippocrates oath, signifying their entrance into the medical school. I had my graduation before 1990, so I never went through a white coat ceremony and I regret not going through this momentary occasion in the presence of my parents. This ceremony implies that students can begin their medical practice. Since medical education was revamped students begin to meet patients in the first year of their study and its appropriate to have a white coat ceremony in their first year. White court gives students an identity, confidence, and authority, earns respect and trust from patients and a sense of empowerment. It makes you to commit yourself to the patient’s well-being. Each of you is expected to give tender loving care and be compassionate to your patients. You should posses excellent communication skills, exhibit humility and embrace experiential lifelong learning. The five Gs’ which are important for a student are, set a goal and work towards that goal, have faith in god, have a guide you can emulate and turn to in times of need and stress, have gratitude to you teachers and patients and be committed to do good work. These five Gs are mantras for students to blossom into a good physicians. Remember, a good physician treats the disease, but a great physician treats the patient who has a disease.
Dr. A Rekha said, students, this is your moment, savor it. The Apollo Institute of Medical Sciences & Research was founded in 2012 by Padma Vibhushan, and Dr. Prathap C. Reddy, he has the vision to make this a world-class institution offering higher education, affordable healthcare and to be at the cutting edge of research. The institutes’ alumni are pursuing post-graduation in several prestigious institutions in India and abroad. I would like to tell both the students and their parents, this is not an easy course, the road is long and arduous, it is not for the faint hearted, it is going to challenge you, both physically and intellectually. There will be occasions when you end up skipping lunch, as you monitor a patient in the ICU. You may have to forego your birthday plan when you assist a woman going through labor. Your muscles will scream in pain as you assist a long and painstaking surgery, your knees will protest as you run down the corridor to get the blood bags. But all this fade in the memory, when that old frail gentleman, raises his trembling arms to bless you for the care given. The little child admitted in ICU, now is robust and grabbing your finger at discharge, that woman who will shyly ask your permission to name her child after you, that patient that you looked at in the trauma will request to stay in touch and that little child with hemophilia in the pediatric ward will tell his mom that he wants to be a doctor like you. Those are the moments that are memorable, those are the moments that make all these hardships worthwhile and that is the power and strength of the white court.
