"White Coat Donning Ceremony" took place at KAEU for the freshment medicine students of KAEU Faculty of Medicine. This traditional event, held at the beginning of each academic year, future doctors donned their white coats for the first time. The ceremony took place on October 17, 2024, at the Ahi Evran Congress and Culture Center’s 15 July National Will Hall, with the participation of Vice Rector and Dean of the Faculty of Medicine Prof. Dr. Ali Güneş, Provincial Health Director Assoc. Prof. Süleyman Ersoy, philanthropist Osman Yalçınkaya, deans, directors, academic and administrative staff, students, and their families.

The first speech at the ceremony was delivered by Elif Zeynep Demir, who admitted to KAEU Faculty of Medicine with the highest entrance score. Speaking on behalf of her peers, Demir expressed her pride in becoming a doctor after a long and challenging journey. She emphasized that being a doctor was not just a profession but a noble calling to save lives. Demir thanked her family for their love and support and stated her commitment to being a compassionate and dedicated “Ahi Doctor.”

Following Demir, Dr. Sümeyye Karadoğan, an emergency medicine resident and alumna of the Faculty of Medicine, took the stage. Karadoğan spoke about the honor of being a source of hope for humanity as a doctor. She emphasized that education didn't end with graduation, and lifelong learning was essential. Karadoğan wished the future doctors success as they donned their white coats.

Vice Rector and Dean of the Faculty of Medicine Prof. Dr. Ali Güneş began his speech by condemning the recent atrocities committed by Israel, which he referred to as a "terrorist state" for its acts of violence against civilians, including women, children, and healthcare workers. Güneş then congratulated the newly admitted medical students and highlighted the modern education environment available at the KAEU Faculty of Medicine. He also referred to the university's ongoing quality improvement efforts. Dean Prof. Dr. Ali Güneş said, “Do not forget for a moment during the training period that when you graduate as a result of six years of intensive education, the most valuable thing on earth ‘human life’ will be delivered into your hands.” Dean Prof. Dr. Ali Güneş advised the prospective physicians to strive to educate and develop themselves in the best way and continued his speech as follows: “I would like you to know that medical education is one of the most difficult educational processes all over the world. Blessing does not come without effort.' With this understanding, you will have to work much harder than you have worked so far in order to maintain your current successes. The profession of medicine deals with human-beings. The main purpose of the world and creation is the human-being. As our religion says, you will be dealing with human life, which is the equal of creation. In our holy book, the Quran, it is stated that 'Whoever saves a life, it is as though he has saved all of humanity,'. For this reason, you need to work hard and never show boredom in order not to make mistakes in your practices regarding the lives entrusted to you. The most fundamental value of our culture is the principle of 'The best of people are those who serve the society the most and are the most useful'.”

Dean Prof. Dr. Ali Güneş stated that it was an indispensable duty of a physician to approach patients with empathy and show them compassion and mercy, and that these lands were the lands where Yunus, Aşık Pasha, Ahmedi Gülşehri, Süleyman Türkmeni, Hacı Bektaşı Veli and Ahi Evran-ı Veli, who were friend of the heart, lived. Stating that the moderation in the Akhism culture, which was founded by Ahi Evran-ı Veli, the person of the heart who gave his name to our university and faculty, was being rightous and justice, Güneş continued his speech as follows: “A person receives neither more nor less than what he deserves. To work and produce, to earn with the sweat of one's brow, to make sacrifices, to be compassionate, merciful, just, virtuous, chaste and honest, to abide by the right, law and equity, to be patient, to control one's anger, to be othergamous, in other words, to prefer the other to oneself has become a 'moral' rule in Akhism. No matter how much these values are forgotten, these are the values of our civilization. It will be our civilization that will make these values flourish again. Today you will start a new life by wearing your white coats. The white coat is a symbol of honesty, morality, confidentiality, purity, modesty, responsibility, diligence, empathy, and the love of serving all people without discrimination of religion, language or race. This apron may get dirty as an object during the time it is worn. But you should not allow the conscientious, moral and humanitarian values that aprons represent to be stained, let alone dirty.” Addressing the lecturers, Prof. Dr. Ali Güneş said that Ahi Evran-ı Veli, who gave his name to our university and faculty of medicine, was famous for his saying ““Whoever comes to us with patience and truth is from us, and whoever surpasses us with wisdom and morality is beyond us.” and that as a faculty bearing the name of the owner of the saying, this saying should be their motto and continued his speech as follows: “Our most important goal should be to raise good physicians who will surprassd us and who are committed to national and spiritual values, who love their people and their country, and who do not refrain from serving their country under any circumstances. The most valuable legacy we will leave should be well-educated ahi physicians.”.

After the speeches, the white coats were ceremoniously presented to the medical students. The event concluded with a group photo to commemorate the occasion.