“The best doctors aren’t the smartest ones” – Dr Austin Agbahiwe Jr
6 min read
The 23 year old Dr Austin Chidera Agbahiwe Jr is a fresh graduate from Afe Babalola University where he read medicine. During his days of academic apprenticeship at the prestigious university, he won several awards, set records and broke records. Currently doing his horsemanship at UNTH Enugu, Dr Agbahiwe spoke with Umuaka Times on several issues including why some medical students fall by the way side, how to prevent such incidents and how Nigeria can improve on medical services.
Dr Agbahiwe who recently celebrated his birthday when he turned 23, spoke on his personal experiences at the university as well as the challenges facing the public universities in Nigeria and more. The interview surely makes an interesting reading.
Excerpts:
Congrats on your academic achievements. Umuaka Times was told that you bagged many awards as a medical student. Can you name them?
Thanks for this opportunity. The awards are, Founder’s Award for First Class in First Year Examinations (2015). Winner, Nigeria Medical Association Ekiti State Branch Intercollegiate Quiz Competition. (October 2016). Winner, Nigeria Medical Association and Nigeria Medical Students Association South-West/Lagos Zone Medical Quiz Competition. (September, 2017). Winner, Emeritus Professor Matthew Akinyemi Araoye Memorial Inter-Collegiate Quiz Competition (December 2018).
Any other ones?
Yes. I also won Second Place, Emeritus Professor Matthew Akinyemi Araoye Memorial Inter-Collegiate Quiz Competition (December 2019). Second Place, Emeritus Professor Matthew Akinyemi Araoye Memorial Inter-Collegiate Quiz Competition (December 2020). Second Place , 10th Edition of GSK Emeritus Prof O.O Akinkugbe. There was also Distinction In Anatomy and Surgery Award in Medical School.
You are indeed a young brilliant student, can you tell us the rigours of reading medicine?
It’s really about tenacity and endurance.
Give more details please.
With focus and consistency being the center of it all. Being smart makes is easier but it’s just 1% of all it takes. Anyone can do medicine. You just need to be focused and renew your motivations each day. Because it’s a competitive field and any moment of distraction can be costly.
Tell us what such distractions can result to.
I personally witnessed people with so much potential and Intelligence drop out cause of distractions. The best doctors aren’t the smartest ones.
What are they?
They are the disciplined and consistent ones. Since medicine is a very large and encompassing field, being flexible in my studies really went a long way to helping me pass.
Can you tell us your best environment for learning?
I learn better when I teach, or practice. So I prefer practical classes, ward rounds, watching videos and more.
To be a good medical student, tell us what the student is expected not to be involved in.
Trying to read everything in medicine is an impossible task. So I adapted to learnt faster and better ways of studying. I wasn’t much of a reader in school. I prefer to learn on the spot. Any new thing I discover or I’m taught, I immediately browse and learn it. Or bookmark it , to revise properly later that day. I never let anyway pass without learning anything new. As I normally say ” Never let the sun rise and set without learning something new.” A concept that has really helped me.
What is the concept?
Slow and steady always wins. The key word here is “Steady”. And that’s what I try my best to achieve.
Are you a humble guy?
(Laughs). I’m human of course but some days aren’t easy. But most days I try my best.
You said anybody can read medicine but many students of medicine have fallen away by the way side. Why?
One word: “Environment. ” I believe one’s environment is very important for success. Medical students should try and surround themselves with people who are like minded. Same goals , people with little or no vices. People who motivate you on days you aren’t feeling up to it.
Is that all?
The right family and friends go a long way too. There are so many traits one should possess but they really depend on ones beliefs and upbringing.
Please mention them.
Wrong environment, wrong crowd, wrong company Which will ultimately affect your grades and hence you fail out. I can’t obviously mention all but ultimately what matters is the “will to remain focused and deliver” and ones environment plays a huge role for reasons I’ve probably mentioned earlier. Also failure to adapt and be flexible. I saw this a lot, especially with intelligent people who fail out.
Is there any other factor you consider?
At times people are used to one trick. They fail to read the room. They believe you can read it all. And most times they don’t finish cause its practically impossible to know everything. In the bid to read everything, they forget or fail to retain what they read Or worse, they fail to read what’s important per time.
What is the hard way the only way to come over these problems you mentioned?
The only way to know this is to come for classes, participate in activities, study your lecturers (cause they usually give hints what they want you to know).
How will you describe your Alma mater Afe Babalola University
It is a great institution, it’s really breaking the norms and expectations of Nigerian educational system both locally and internationally. I believe in a few years time it will be the best in the country. The school has serious investments in Medicine and Law as well as other colleges, evidenced by the recent commissioning of our teaching hospital- “Abuad Multisystem”.
So how can you summarize the experiences you gathered at the school?
It’s a very good school and I’m proud of the time I spent there.
Critics of private universities in Nigeria especially from the government side, usually claim that private universities hardly do well in deep science courses, especially medicine. They cite the reason that they don’t have the funding etc. How true is this?
That’s the existing stereotype, but as someone who went to one, it is very false because most government schools don’t have the funding they claim they have because of the bad governance plus they have lecturers who rarely attend classes.
Please give more details about the absentee lecturers.
Most of these lecturers teach in at least 2 or more schools because the government schools don’t pay well and they have to make ends meet, so you have a reduced or diluted Impact on the students. Let us also not forget about “the nationwide strikes”.
What is the impact of that?
Many of the students who entered school before me still haven’t graduated because of strike.
Dr Uche Ojiaku, an Akalite and a medical doctor based in the United States in an interview with Umuaka Times a couple of years ago, said that despite all the poor working conditions of service, Nigerian doctors have achieved a lot. Do you agree with him?
Yes I do. Both locally and internationally. Now and again , you hear stories about Nigerian doctors breaking the glass ceiling across various fields. We have so much potential and a lot to offer that we excel when we have a working system or just the basic support. Here in the country where funding and capital are scarce, Nigerian doctors still excel even with the poor working conditions. That’s why a working government, a working system is essential.
You mean Nigerian doctors are really doing well?
We’ve done so much with the little given to us. Imagine the possibilities when we are given more.
So how do we improve medical services in Nigeria?
There are many ways to improve healthcare in Nigeria. Proper remuneration of health workers, provision of medical infrastructures, Health Education and promotion to improve health seeking behaviour amongst Nigerians.
So what is your advocacy?
The government should have the political will and drive for doctors to head government agencies that impact on health policies.
There are people who contributed to make you what you are today, can you please extent your greetings to them all?
I have a very supportive family and friends. But I wouldn’t be where I am today without the strength and support from my Dad -Dr. Austin Agbahiwe and my mother -Mrs Frances Austin-Agbahiwe. They’ve been more than supportive and I can only pray to continue to make them proud. I pray for long life to both of them, so that they can reap the good deeds they’ve sown.
Also I’m grateful to God, the Almighty father for giving me and my parents life and strength and the will to start and finish. I only pray for more strength and grace.
Dr Austin Agbahiwe Jr, Umuaka Times wishes you well in your medical practice. We will surely come back again.
Thanks a lot sir.
