Medical graduate beats Makerere professorship publication benchmark before internship

A Makerere University medical graduate who published 31 peer-reviewed research papers before completing his degree has become the latest example cited in the growing debate over unpaid internships for medical professionals in Uganda.

Ivaan Pitua, who graduated with a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBChB), received the Distinguished Research Award during the Makerere University College of Health Sciences graduation ceremony after achieving a research record rarely seen among medical students.

The recognition has drawn attention not only to his academic achievements but also to the conditions many newly qualified doctors face as they begin their mandatory internship training.

According to Prof. Sabrina Kitaka, Pitua had 30 peer-reviewed publications when the award was announced. The figure has since risen to 31.

His achievement has attracted attention because it exceeds the publication requirement for promotion to full professor at Makerere University. The university requires academics to have at least eight publications before attaining the rank.

Pitua reached that mark nearly four times over before completing medical school.

The discussion gained momentum after Dr Robert Kalyesubula, a nephrologist and researcher at Makerere University, highlighted the issue on social media.

“Meet Ivaan Pitua who scooped the Distinguished Research Award at Makerere Medics with 31 publications before his MBChB grad! How do you expect him to work for free in his internship?” Kalyesubula wrote.

His comments fed into a long-running debate about the welfare of medical interns in Uganda.

Medical graduates must complete internship training before they can receive full licences to practise independently. However, concerns over delayed payments and unpaid internships have triggered protests, petitions and industrial action by medical interns over the years.

Pitua's case has amplified the discussion because of the scale of his academic output while still a student.

The MBChB programme at Makerere runs for six years and combines classroom learning, clinical rotations, examinations and hospital-based training.

Many graduates complete the programme without publishing a single research paper.

Publishing one peer-reviewed study often requires months of research, data collection, analysis, writing and review.

Producing 31 publications before graduation therefore places Pitua among the most prolific student researchers seen at the institution.

The Distinguished Research Award recognised not only his academic performance but also his contribution to medical knowledge while still undergoing training.

His achievement has since become part of a wider conversation about how Uganda supports highly skilled graduates entering the health sector and whether the country's internship system adequately rewards their contribution.