New Delhi/Hyderabad: A Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health and Family Welfare in its report on the Quality of Medical Education in India has noted that the National Medical Commission (NMC) has an excellent opportunity to improve quality of medical education in India.
The report was presented to the Rajya Sabha on February 9 and laid in the Lok Sabha on the same day. The committee was chaired by Bhubanwswar Kalita also recommended that the National Medical Commission undertake a comparative study of best practices of its parallel organisation in various countries.
"The Committee feels that this measure can help NMC to usher in best practices followed around the world and help in making NMC an institution par excellence," the report said.
The Committee also recommended that the NMC should maintain a real-time national database akin to the GME Track of the USA. "As regards the maintenance of a national database of resident doctors, the Committee recommends that NMC maintain a real-time national database akin to the GME Track of the USA. This national database can allow access to multiple stakeholders viz, Ministry, States, Medical Colleges, and other concerned parties. This database can also serve as a tool to decimate the limitation of resources in the newly opened institutions and operate as a platform for experience and knowledge sharing among the resident doctors," the report added.
"The Committee notes that the National Medical Commission (NMC) has an excellent opportunity to improve the quality of medical education in India. However, it must address various issues related to modernising medical education and introduce reforms to bring remarkable improvements in the overall healthcare system in the country," the report added.
The report also said that the NMC can take several essential and immediate steps to strengthen medical education in India, including setting and enforcing high standards for medical education, promoting research in medical education, supporting faculty development, and making medical education more accessible.
"The Committee believes that by taking these steps, the NMC can help to produce a new generation of highly qualified and competent medical graduates. The Committee notes that the current situation regarding medical seats both in Under Graduate and Post Graduate in our country is a critical issue that warrants immediate attention," the report added.
The Committee also recommended the Centre to chalk out a comprehensive India-specific approach that considers the nation's healthcare needs in the next 20-25 years, identifies the categories of doctors, viz. pediatricians, ophthalmologists, neurosurgeons, critical care specialists, infectious disease specialists that the country would need rather than just randomly increasing general surgery, pharma, and anatomy seats.
"The Committee believes that such a concerted effort to produce need-based specialists/ doctors commensurate with disease-burden specialists will secure India's healthcare needs in the future. The Committee recommends that in the case of the current scenario modalities for a fair distribution of doctors‘ workforce across the country especially in underprivileged areas can be worked out by the NMC by offering incentives, monetary or otherwise," the report said.
The Committee recommended the NMC should encourage the medical colleges to develop a tradition of research in the college so that upcoming MBBS students and later MD or MS students gain sufficient exposure in the research ambience of the institute. "Furthermore, colleges should incentivise quality research both at the student and faculty level," it added.
"The Committee notes that faculty development is vital for ensuring that faculty members have the skills and knowledge they need to teach and train students effectively," the report added.
