The students of Medicine and Surgery degree course received their first white coats during a ceremony held at UniCongress Hall of UniCamillus University.
The event, opened by the Rector Gianni Profita, was attended by Barbara Tavazzi, President of Medicine and Surgery degree course, Professor Filomena Pietrantonio and the journalist Luciano Onder, historical RAI presenter of “Medicina 33”.
“Scientific ignorance makes us die.” With these words Luciano Onder repeatedly stressed the extreme importance of correct medical information as a tool for preventing and fighting the spread of pandemics. The journalist explained how crucial correct information has been the one provided by the press in the 1980s for the prevention and fight against AIDS, and how fundamental it is in this period, in order to help to counter the spread of Covid with a kind of information that brings people real data, and not conflicting opinions that only create confusion in people’s heads.
Professor Filomena Pietrantonio talked about the “UniCamillus Task Force” project and her first humanitarian mission carried out in Cameroon, born from the will of the Rector who saw the involvement of Professors for specific training dedicated to healthcare professionals at the Bimengue Hospital. Professor Pietrantonio focused on the importance of missions on the territory and their contribution to develop a better health, starting from specific local peculiarities. The aim is to support the population to train people with great humility and work together to achieve goals so that UniCamillus can really give its added value.
Professor Tavazzi, President of the Degree Course, underlined the value of this ceremony: the white coat as a symbol for those who work in medicine and hospitals, the advancement in the study path from the preclinical to the clinical part. During the intervention, the Professor reminded the students that future doctors must keep in their mind two principles: professionalism and humanity. Professionalism as knowledge and continuous training; humanity as the development of empathy with the patient, which is acquired by doing. She wishes the students courage, strength, ability to study and to honor the white coat for an exclusive personal training, able to be placed at the service of the patient.
Anticipating the project of wanting to open a local medical school in developing countries, the Rector Gianni Profita, hoped that the future Professors could be the current students of UniCamillus. A challenge not to be missed, that of making the territories of developing countries self-sufficient and no longer in need of humanitarian missions.
