| In 1965, WHO established an objective for the following decade of training one doctor for each 10 000 population. The situation in Northern Nigeria, where by 1971 there was one doctor to 150 000 people, is similar to that in other developing Countries. One reason is that the number of secondary school graduates has not reached expectations and those who graduate are in demand not only in medicine but in other fields such as agriculture and Englneering as well. Physician education should be innovative rather than a duplication of Western models: training should be designed in the context of local problems. The physician's training in this context must include orientation toward the practice of preventive medicine and public health; training in the instruction and leadership of auxiliaries; instruction in handling mass campaigns; a sympathetic appreciation of local culture and resources, etc. Given the lack of resources or the educational infrastructure required to produce the needed number of doctors through university training, a well-trained and disciplined corps of intermediary personnel is essential. |