JOIN USAzad's boost to medicos
The health minister has changed medical education rules to give additional points to MBBS graduates in post graduate entrance examination if they serve in rural areas. The change has received green signal from the Medical Council of India (MCI) as well.
If a fresh medical graduate undertakes a year of rural posting, the person will get an additional weightage of 10 per cent. For their second year, they will get 20 per cent weightage and in the third year, 30 per cent weightage will be given in the entrance. But 30 per cent will be the ceiling, even if the person continues to provide services in rural areas in subsequent years.
The service will have to be rendered in rural areas after completion of the internship.
Health Ministry officials told Deccan Herald that the new rule will come into effect from 2010 academic session. Infusion of fresh medical graduates in primary healthcare centres will benefit the national rural health mission as the students would be encouraged to utilise their skills in the service of people in backward and far-flung areas.
Azad’s predecessor Anbumani Ramadoss too proposed rural posting of fresh MBBS graduates. But he wanted to make it mandatory for all through legislation while Azad has made the scheme optional yet attractive for students.
While on one hand the centre is increasing the number of doctors in primary health care centres to tackle basic healthcare issues, it has offered another solution to enhance the number of specialists and super-specialist doctors.
The health ministry and the MCI have agreed to change the teacher student ratio to 1:2, which means each professor and associate professors can teach two students. As the norms for setting up of medical colleges have been relaxed, the number of medical students is expected to rise.