NMC Sets up Committee to Look into Suicide Issue of Medical Students

A 15-member committee was formed by the National Medical Commission to look into the issue of suicide by medical students. The recommendations of the committee will be submitted to the Union Health Ministry. Reports ETV Bharat's Gautam Debroy

New Delhi:Being aware of the fact that over 122 medical students have taken their lives in the last five years, the National Medical Commission (NMC) has set up a 15-member committee to look into this critical issue and suggest recommendations.

A senior official aware of the development told ETV Bharat that the recommendations will be submitted to the health ministry for its proper implementation.

"The formation of the committee is a welcome step. It’s really tragic that medical students are taking drastic steps during their study. I hope the recommendations would be implemented at the ground level," said Dr Vinay Aggarwal, past president of the Indian Medical Association (IMA).

According to Dr Aggarwal, there are several reasons that force medical students to take such a decision. "The medical line is very competitive. Here are limited seats against which (several) candidates apply. Now-a-days, many of the students come under pressure, the moment they get admission. The pressure may be financial, family issues and others. The counsellor who is appointed by the authorities should take into consideration the present state of affairs of the candidates," said Dr Aggrawal, who is also the present chairman of the action committee of IMA.

As per NMC data, at least 122 medical students, 64 in MBBS and 58 in post-graduate courses died by suicide in the last five years. The NMC took the decision to form the committee following an online survey conducted on the issue.

In the survey launched by NMC, medical students and faculty submitted details about the mental health illnesses they were suffering from including ranging from crippling anxiety and work pressure to overwhelming stress.

According to the survey, over 37,000 medical students have said that they are suffering from potentially risky mental health ailments, alarming the body into prescribing a phalanx of measures including regulated duty hours and suicide watch.

Interestingly, the NMC received several suggestions during the online survey which include gate-keeper programmes to prevent suicide and for identifying vulnerable students, regulating duty hours for post-grad students, better student facilities, and friendly work environment among others.