Today, 253 new doctors from the Graduation 2014 of the Medical University in Sofia took the Hippocratic Oath. The Minister of He alth, Dr. Petar Moskov, personally came to the ceremony at the NDK. His young colleagues welcomed him with sincere applause, and the minister tried to convince them to stay at work in Bulgaria. A preliminary survey among graduates shows that only 26% of them want to stay in Bulgaria, and 74% will specialize and work abroad.
In his impromptu speech, the minister said: “Follow your dreams. If they are about trying somewhere else and finding your happiness there, do it. But as a colleague and as a teacher of some of you, I will say that it is best at home. Each generation must fight its own battle and enforce its own rules. My generation has so far failed to do the best. If someone has decided that medicine is a trade and the doctor is a hired worker of the norm, this should not continue. We must be together, be a community. Fight your fight and don't give up”.
The words of Dr. Moskov moved the young doctors. They also applauded him when he announced that next week the new regulation on specializations, which is in their interest, will be published in the State Gazette.
Minutes later, the entire graduating class spontaneously rose to their feet during the performance of the song "My Side" by Emil Dimitrov, performed by the band "Three Tenors".
Among the graduating class of 253 people, 189 are Bulgarians, and 64 are representatives of 10 foreign countries. There are 47 honors students, and Dr. Anelia Nankova and Dr. Ventsislav Grigorov are full honors students. They received the "Golden Hippocrates" prize from the rector, Prof. Vanyo Mitev, as well as awards from the Bulgarian Medical Union. The graduation party chose Dr. Svetoslav Toshev, surgeon from Aleksandrovsk Hospital, as their favorite teacher.
