It was learnt that Federal University of Technology, Akure, will soon establish a medical school as well as a teaching hospital to complement its School of Basic Sciences.
This was made known by the Vice-Chancellor, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Prof. Adebiyi Daramola, on Monday following the National Universities Commission’s approval granted to the university to establish a School of Health and Health Technology.
According to him, the new departments will take off next academic session with courses, such as Physiology, Anatomy, Dental Technology and Optometry.
In his words, “We’ve received the nod to set up departments of Anatomy and Physiology having previously established a Department of Biochemistry.
So, we are starting with degrees in the basic medical sciences and ultimately to end up with a teaching hospital. These two new departments are precursors of a medical school because we already have Biochemistry in the School of Sciences.
‘‘Besides, we cannot have health-related courses without having the core, which is medicine. You cannot have optometry and other ancillary courses without a Teaching Hospital, which is at the core. Some of the courses we are starting with are basic medical sciences.
If you are familiar with the training of medical doctors, they start with what is called basic medical sciences. It is when they are well-grounded in these, that they go to the clinical,” he said.
