Covid-19 impact: BMCRI medicos risk qualifying without surgical know-how

Postgraduate surgical students at the Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute risk qualifying with inadequate skills if Victoria Hospital does not start non-Covid services until April.

The institute has 94 surgical postgraduate students, including 27 in General Surgery, 12 in Orthopaedics, 26 in Anaesthesia, 19 in Ophthalmology, and 10 in ENT. The students have urged the management to start non-Covid surgeries in the Trauma Block and C Block on the Victoria campus.

With more than 35 faculty members and 76 residents, the Department of Surgery at Victoria is one of the largest in the state with eight functioning units (five in Victoria Hospital and three in Bowring hospital).

“It has been six months since they have had any surgical exposure. Students who get admission to BMCRI are top-ranked students. It is the toughest and most competitive college to get into. It is only in the final year that students get the maximum chance to perform surgeries. Students are evaluated based on their surgical skills,” said a Victoria Hospital surgeon, requesting anonymity.

An OT logbook is maintained in the three years of the PG course to record the number of surgeries students individually performed, operations they assisted and witnessed, besides noting whether they were first assistants or not. The Medical Council of India recommends a certain number of surgeries which students should have performed, monitored, or witnessed.

“That assessment is not happening now, whether he is a good surgeon or not. Now, we can only assess them in the final exams in which a case history is given, and their theoretical knowledge is tested, which even MBBS students do. Also, an operative research thesis topic is given for which they should at least observe surgeries. Their OT logbooks are empty, and the thesis is incomplete. These doctors are graduating without being adequately trained. This is unfair,” the surgeon added.

Dr M K Ramesh, HoD of Surgery, Victoria Hospital, said: “What happened with these students is unfortunate. But passing the course is not the problem, getting surgical expertise is. Extending their course is like penalising them, despite them working so hard during the pandemic.”