Medical House officers are doctors who just graduated from medical school and are currently undergoing their one-year mandatory training program in a hospital approved and licensed by the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) for their permanent license.
When medical students graduate from medical school in Nigeria, what they get is just a temporary license that is valid for just 1 year. A one-year training program is mandatory to get a permanent license to practice as a physician in the country. And this license can be renewed on a yearly basis.
Medical housemanship is a term used to refer to this training program where freshly graduated doctors are trained for one year in order for them to qualify as medical officers.
The term medical housemanship is commonly mistaken for medical internship, however, they are very different.
While medical housemanship is used to describe the one-year skill-acquisition program for newly graduated doctors, medical internship, however, is used to describe a similar one-year program but for other health professionals that are not doctors like; nurses, radiographers, med lab scientists, physiotherapists, etc.
Also, Read; Ultimate Guide to Housemanship in Nigeria
Do You Get Paid During Housemanship?
Yes, newly graduated medical doctors who have completed their MBBS degree in an MDCN-approved medical school get paid during medical housemanship as long as they undergo the training program in an MDCN-licensed hospital. This is usually a teaching hospital, a federal medical center, and other MDCN-approved private hospitals.
In this post, you will be finding out how much the medical housemanship salary is worth per month in Nigeria.
Also, Read; 7 things to do before housemanship
Medical Housemanship Salary in Nigeria (Updated)
So how much do they pay doctors in housemanship?
The updated medical housemanship salary in Nigeria for Federal hospitals as of December 2022 is NGN 187,000 per month. This includes Federal teaching hospitals and Federal Medical Centres.
This amount excludes hazard allowance and includes accommodation fees and other levies like association dues (ARD dues and ID card dues).
The medical doctor housemanship salary in Nigeria for State and Private hospitals ranges between NGN180,000 to NGN230,000 per month.
This includes hazard allowance, accommodation fees, and other levies where applicable.
Also, Read; How to draft an application letter for medical housemanship
Some Frequently Asked Questions about Medical Housemanship in Nigeria:
Is Housemanship the Same as Internship?
No! The medical internship is not the same as medical housemanship in Nigeria. While medical internship refers to a mandatory 12-monthly program that newly graduated allied health professionals undergo after bagging a master’s degree, medical housemanship refers to a 12-monthly training program strictly for medical doctors who have completed their MBBS degree in Nigeria.
How Many Years is Housemanship in Nigeria?
Medical housemanship in Nigeria lasts for a total duration of 1 year. Within this 12 months period, a medical house officer rotates through 4 core departments which include; Internal Medicine (3 months), Surgery (3 months), Paediatrics/Child Health (3 months), and Obstetrics/Gynecology (3 months).
What to do after Housemanship in Nigeria?
After medical housemanship in Nigeria, medical doctors become medical officers and they progress to do a one-year mandatory national youth service program. In this program, you serve the country for another 12 months in any region of your choice.
Is a Houseman a Doctor?
Yes, a houseman also called a house officer is a term used to refer to a junior doctor currently undergoing housemanship program in a teaching hospital.
Also, read; Medical Doctors’ Salary in Nigeria
