President Droupadi Murmu attended the first convocation ceremony of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Deoghar on Thursday, where she urged graduating doctors to embrace compassion, community engagement, and inclusive healthcare alongside clinical excellence.
Addressing students, faculty, and dignitaries, President Murmu highlighted the importance of expanding AIIMS Deoghar’s focus beyond tertiary care to actively support primary healthcare delivery. “Primary care is the foundation of universal health coverage,” she said, calling on doctors and students to collaborate with Urban Primary Health Centres and Rural Community Health Centres to strengthen grassroots-level healthcare services.
President Murmu reminded graduates that an AIIMS education is widely seen as a hallmark of excellence and urged them to pair their skills with empathy. “A good doctor is not just one with clinical knowledge, but one with a sharp clinical sense and sensitive communication skills,” she noted. Emphasizing the emotional aspect of caregiving, she said, “Be clinical in diagnosis or surgery, but not clinical in your behaviour. Be sympathetic and offer advice with compassion.”
The President also underscored the role of AIIMS and its healthcare professionals in the national effort to reduce out-of-pocket health expenditure. She stressed that institutions like AIIMS Deoghar must contribute both institutionally and individually to this goal. She encouraged all stakeholders at AIIMS Deoghar to align their efforts with India’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) related to health. “Evaluate the progress of India and Jharkhand on these goals and determine how the institute can contribute further,” she suggested.
Calling AIIMS Deoghar a beacon of hope in bridging the gap in healthcare accessibility, President Murmu said such institutions are vital to fulfilling the nation’s ambitious health targets. “AIIMS institutions have been set up to reduce disparities in healthcare. They must not only provide world-class specialist treatment at low cost but also act as agents of transformation in the healthcare ecosystem,” she said.