Do not shutdown doctors of interdisciplinary origin

I just read the Ghana Medical & Dental Council's release which says: “…with effect from 1st January 2026, only candidates with a science background and a minimum of a credit pass in all subjects at SSCE/WASSCE or an equivalent qualification shall be eligible for admission to the Council’s Registration Examination.” I am saddened by this position by the M&DC based on the following grounds:

1. Over-formalistic and exclusion – the Council's decision creates a space where brilliant students who have had good education elsewhere without the required science background but with qualified prerequisites from those places are excluded from contributing their knowledge to the development and growth of the sector. This creates a barrier of exclusion rather than inclusion in finding an antidote to a modern world bedevilled with strange diseases on a daily basis. I see it as a policy of target exclusion rather than one that seeks to adequately reform the sector for greater patient care.

2. It defeats every purpose of interdisciplinarity and innovation – for every developing field just like the Ghana M&DC, it needs to inculcate the combined forces of data science, social science, engineering and humanities to create a solid foundation whose results leave no gaps where necessary. And for that to happen, knowledge from other backgrounds must be appreciated and roped into the picture. For us to develop as a nation, we must carry all programs and sectors along regardless of how little their contribution is to where we want to take Ghana to. For the Ghana M&DC to categorically position itself to take that decision weakens the motivation and interests of non-science researchers, academicians and clinicians who have good training in communication science, social science, ethics or computing in other jurisdictions whose works have contributed immensely to better patient care.

3. Gatekeeping from foreign trainees – I see the decision to be one that seeks to protect locally trained professionals. But that rule is poorly designed. If such a rule is to be applied, our academic institutions need to create prerequisite courses in our colleges for non-science backgrounds who have interest in that sector. I would be happy if the Council can furnish the public with a published empirical justification for its position.

4. Conditional prerequisites – the Ghana M&DC has to have graduate entry programs that admit non-science students once they tick all the requirements expected. In the developed world, bridging courses are available. This shows diversity and a vision that sees the future as one of inclusivity through the pathways of conversion, bridging or prerequisites to achieve a vision.

5. The U.S. Supreme Court's decisions in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard and v. UNC (June 29, 2023) emphasize that admissions policies must be carefully tailored, justified, and transparent to avoid legal issues, particularly those that may result in unlawful disparate impact. We should learn from good rules from other societies as we work on making ours better.

I hope that the Ghana M&DC will publish an evidence-based consultation that necessitates new thresholds because a non-science background doesn't automatically make you a poor student or a predictor of poor performance. If this rule stands, it will amount to credential-shopping and will contribute significantly to killing the diversity of skill sets needed for a developing country that needs so much from each sector.

Abdul-Razak Lukman
[email protected]