Suddenly a physician, suddenly a physician

On July 6, the MHH-Alumni e.V. bid farewell to the graduates of Human medicine. Over 300 guests gathered for the graduation ceremony in Lecture Hall F at Hannover Medical School.

Die Absolvent:innen tragen ein T-Shirt mit der Aufschrift "Und plötzlich bin ich Arzt" — Lisa Busse und Jonas Gröhl trugen das zur Rede passende Outfit. © Karin Kaiser, MHH

There have already been many graduation speeches in lecture hall F. However, the fact that graduate Lisa Busse and Jonas Gröhl wore T-shirts printed with the title of their speech "And suddenly we were physicians" and handed out small stickers was a novelty. The two recalled the six years of study in numerous anecdotes, but also had wistful words for the Corona years. They ended with a call to take two points from the Geneva Pledge particularly literally: to share medical knowledge for the benefit of the patient and not to lose sight of one's own health over the passion for the profession.

Professor Piepenbrock mit Familie Noll auf der Bühne. — Prof. Dr. Piepenbrock (left) and Noll's family were delighted with EM!L prizewinner Dr. Noll. Karin Kaiser, MHH

Sharing medical knowledge is also the basic idea behind EM!L, the alumni prize for innovative teaching, which the MHH Alumni Association traditionally awards at the graduation ceremony in the summer. This year, Dr. Christoph Noll, Clinical Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine at MHH, beat off a challenging field of applicants with his NEXT-VR training program. The aim of the program is to practice decision-making under pressure through realistic emergency simulation using VR goggles.

Portraifotos — Professor Dr. Just (li.) und Dr. Renneberg gratulierten den Absvolvent:innen. © Karin Kaiser, MHH

The appeal for self-care made by Busse and Gröhl was also echoed in the words of Dean of Studies Prof. Dr. Ingo Just. He combined his congratulations to the new colleagues with the recommendation to adopt a good resilience strategy in order to deal with the increasing time pressure in everyday working life. Dr. Marion Charlotte Renneberg, Deputy President of the Lower Saxony Medical Association, congratulated them on behalf of the 45,000 physicians in the state and also had some advice for them: "Stay in touch, stay open. There are so many opportunities to keep learning and that's the great thing about the profession!"

Piepenbrock hält einen Strauße Rosen in der Hand — Professor Dr. Siegfried Piepenbrock übergab die Rose des Alumnivereins... © Karin Kaiser, MHH

Prof. Dr. Siegfried Piepenbrock, Chairman of the Board of MHH-Alumni e.V., recalled in his welcoming address his own student days in the 1968s, when academic celebrations were deliberately rejected. However, he now appreciates graduation ceremonies again and is always delighted to be able to hand over the graduation certificates and red roses together with MHH President Prof. Dr. Michael P. Manns.

Sängerin mit Gitarre am Mikro — Emotionale Klänge von Singer-Songwriterin Pantani © Karin Kaiser, MHH

The accompanying sounds were provided by singer-songwriter Mita Pantani, who interpreted her own songs and evergreens with her guitar and great voice. Her final song, "Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield, summed up the spirit of optimism and left the guests in a great mood for the subsequent champagne reception with canapés, lots of snapshots and lively conversation.