(DDM) – The Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) has issued a detailed clarification on the housemanship engagement process for newly inducted medical and dental practitioners across the country.
Housemanship remains a mandatory professional engagement carried out in approved hospitals, where newly qualified doctors and dentists work under the supervision of senior consultants as they transition into independent clinical practice.
Following induction and pledge-taking, MDCN directs all newly registered practitioners to immediately create a profile on the official Housemanship Portal at www.housemanship.mdcn.gov.ng.
The council explains that once candidates receive their provisional registration certificates, portal registration becomes compulsory and serves as the only recognised pathway for placement under the Centralised Housemanship Placement System.
MDCN strongly warns applicants against sending application letters or making direct contacts with federal hospitals or the council itself, either personally or through third parties, including parents or proxies.
According to the council, such actions violate the centralised placement policy and may attract disciplinary consequences.
The provisional registration certificate issued by MDCN is strictly meant to enable doctors and dentists obtain their certificate of experience through housemanship.
The certificate remains valid for 24 months, within which the practitioner must commence and complete housemanship training.
MDCN clarifies that the centralised housemanship portal currently covers 47 approved federal hospitals.
Each of these hospitals has a fixed number of housemanship slots determined by training capacity and accreditation standards.
The council stresses that the portal does not operate on an “open” or “closed” basis, as vacancies depend solely on the availability of slots in each hospital.
When a preferred hospital does not appear on the portal, MDCN explains that it simply means no vacancy exists at that time.
Vacancies are updated every four to six weeks, depending on when current house officers complete their training and exit the system.
MDCN acknowledges that portal traffic usually increases significantly during vacancy update periods.
To manage this, the council says it has expanded server capacity and introduced safeguards such as single-user login and one-time password (OTP) authentication to prevent congestion and abuse.
Beyond federal hospitals, MDCN notes that 81 non-federal hospitals are accredited to offer housemanship placements.
Applicants seeking placement in these non-federal institutions are advised to approach the hospitals directly for information on available opportunities.
The council confirms that a total of 128 hospitals nationwide are currently accredited for housemanship training, spanning federal, state, private, and military institutions.
MDCN assures practitioners that the available training slots across these facilities are sufficient to accommodate all inducted doctors and dentists each year.
In a strong disclaimer, MDCN states that it has not created, endorsed, or authorised any social media groups for housemanship placement.
The council warns that practitioners who join such groups do so at their own risk and should not hold MDCN responsible for any negative outcomes, including disciplinary action.
MDCN reiterates that housemanship opportunities are strictly reserved for qualified medical and dental practitioners and urges applicants to rely only on official MDCN platforms for accurate information.
The council advises candidates to stay informed, follow due process, and regularly check the official website for verified updates.
