PG Times

In its recently revised guidelines, the Medical Council of India (MCI) has enhanced the upper age limit for appointment to senior residentship from 33 to 40 years. Some doctors have, however, pointed out that some Central and autonomous medical institutions have still not implemented these guidelines. In a letter written to the Health Minister on December 25, 2017, the Federation of Resident Doctors' Association (FORDA), an umbrella body of resident doctors, pointed out that the guidelines have been implemented in Delhi government institutions but the not in Institutions such as AIIMS and PGI, Chandigarh. "Implementation of the 40 year age criteria for senior residents will help in filling up the posts lying vacant in our medical institutions. In addition to this, various state governments have rural service bonds after MBBS and some have service bonds after post-graduation as well. Many doctors are well above the age of 33 years when they complete the compulsory posti...

By Dr. Amrinder Bajaj The writer is Unit Head, obstetrics and gynaecology, Max Shalimar Bagh and Pitampura. First Fortis, then Max and now BL Kapoor Hospital have fallen prey to slander. All three hospitals serve thousands of patients everyday in Delhi and NCR. The latest video doing the rounds is of Bobby Kataria and his mob laying siege to Balaji Action Hospital – 1.9 million FB views in 48 hours – to exploit the death of a six-day-old baby, probably for political gains. Hospitals have become arenas for populist political battles where slogans and protests, threats and abuses are hurled at random. They are ignited and stoked by an irresponsible section of media that sensationalises without verifying facts. Much hue and cry was made of the ‘live baby’ wrapped callously in a plastic bag at Max Shalimar Bagh when it was a mere five months (22 weeks) old fetus that had negligible chances of survival. Such fetuses can go into a state of suspended animation for a varying period...

The National Board of Examinations (NBE), regulatory body for postgraduate medical education, has removed its executive director Bipin Batra for allegedly occupying the post in violation of rules. The move comes in the wake of allegations of irregularities, lack of transparency and malfunctioning of the NBE administration, with the latest being charges of malpractices in the conduct of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET). The autonomous body under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, in a meeting here yesterday, also ordered an inquiry into various charges of irregularities against Batra. “Bipin Batra shall cease to discharge the functions of executive director, NBE, with immediate effect,” said a draft resolution adopted by the board. It also said Rashmikant Dave, vice president, NBE has been appointed honorary executive director till a regular appointment is made to the post in compliance with rules. NBE president Abhijat Sheth, when contacted by PTI, ...

The Kerala government has passed orders fixing the fee for PG medical courses(clinical) at ₹14 lakh. Non-clinical PG degree would cost ₹8.5 lakh. This fee would be applicable for colleges under the Kerala Christian Professional College Management Federation for the academic year 2017-18. The fee was arrived at following discussions between the federation representatives and the Health Minister. The annual fee for the PG diploma (clinical) course would be ₹10.5 lakh. The fee for the superspecialty course would be ₹18.5 lakh. The fee for the NRI quota would be ₹35 lakh. The R. Rajendra Babu Fee Regulatory Committee on Friday passed order making this fee structure applicable to all other self-financing colleges in the State.

With the arrest of two people, Delhi Police have cracked a case wherein computer servers were allegedly hacked during the National Eligibility and Entrance Test (NEET-PG), held to admit students into postgraduate medical courses in December, 2016. Raids are also being held in Delhi, Bengaluru, Bihar and other cities to nab the rest of the accused, which include some doctors, police said. Police said the arrested persons have been identified as Abhishek Singh, a native of Varanasi, and Atul Vats, a native of Patna. “Police received information on January 20 that some people cracked the online medical entrance examination, held between December 5 and December 13, after hacking the servers. With the help of technical surveillance, police identified the accused and teams were formed to unearth the conspiracy,” police sources said, adding that a case has been registered following a complaint by Inspector Ashish Kumar, who was the leading the investigation team before Inspector Lokendr...

Physicians holding postgraduate medical qualifications awarded in countries like the US, the UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand will now be eligible to teach in medical colleges in India.  Medical Council of India (MCI) has amended the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 to usher in the change which could help meet the shortage of teachers in Indian medical colleges, including those in the state where numerous teaching posts are lying vacant. Till now, those with an overseas PG medical degree had to clear an eligibility test for registration and thereafter apply for a teaching job in Indian medical schools. A postgraduate degree — MD/MS/DM/MCh — is the minimum qualification required to apply for the post of assistant professor in Indian medical colleges. While students with medical degrees from the US, the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada were exempted from the Foreign Medical Graduates (FMGA) examination in order to pursue medical practice in India...

DNB July 2017 session Notification

Fulfilling the long time demand of the serving doctors in Himachal Pradesh, the State government on Thursday introduced an amendment bill in the Assembly concerning the safety and security of the doctors and making any kind of violence against them a non-bailable offence. State Health Minister Kaul Singh Thakur presented the Himachal Pradesh Medicare service persons and Medicare service institutions (prevention of violence and damage to property) amendment bill 2017. This will be an amendment to the 2009 Medicare Act. Jail term The amended bill has made any offence against the doctors cognizable and non-bailable with a provision for upto three years imprisonment. Section 4 of the 2009 Act had a provision to define any offence as cognizable but bailable. The Himachal Medical Officers Association had been demanding for a long time that the Act be amended and the offence be made non-bailable in view of incidences of violence against the doctors on duty.

By Devi Shetty  and  Sneha Iype Recently, the Supreme Court turned down a request for termination of pregnancy from a 27 week pregnant lady, with a Down syndrome foetus. Indian law prevents termination of pregnancy after 20 weeks of gestation for major foetal abnormalities. However, many developed countries like Canada allow the termination of pregnancy even at an advanced stage, in case of foetal abnormalities. The time has come for us to review the law with restricting termination of pregnancy to within 20 weeks. If the mother feels that she is not mentally ready to take care of a child with incurable cardiac problems or Down syndrome, she should have the right to terminate the pregnancy at a later stage. Operating on a new born baby with a hole in the heart and watching him or her grow up and celebrate life is the most joyful experience a surgeon like me (Shetty) can have. Unfortunately not all the stories I have for my children has a happy ending. About 5% of...

बीएचयू के सर सुंदरलाल अस्पताल में सोमवार की रात जूनियर डॉक्टर्स और छात्रों के बीच हुए विवाद का असर दूसरे दिन भी दिखा। घटना के विरोध में देर रात जूनियर डॉक्टर हड़ताल पर चले गए। वहीं, डॉक्टरों पर कार्रवाई की मांग को लेकर मंगलवार को छात्रों ने केंद्रीय कार्यालय पर जमकर हंगामा किया। कुछ छात्रों ने केंद्रीय कार्यालय चौराहे पर सड़क जाम कर दी तो सौ से अधिक छात्र केंद्रीय कार्यालय पहुंच गए। छात्रों को केंद्रीय कार्यालय तक पहुंचने से रोकने की सुरक्षाकर्मियों की तमाम कोशिशें धरी रह गईं। सुरक्षाकर्मियों ने अंदर से कार्यालय का चैनल को बंद कर दिया तो छात्र वहीं धरने पर बैठ गए। एक ओर जहां छात्र जूनियर डॉक्टरों पर कार्रवाई की मांग पर अड़े रहे, वहीं दूसरी ओर हड़ताल के जरिए जूनियर डॉक्टर भी अपना विरोध दर्ज करा रहे हैं। डॉक्टरों की हड़ताल के चलते मरीजों और तीमारदारों को खासी दिक्कतें उठानी पड़ीं। सोमवार को विज्ञान संस्थान का छात्र शुभम सिंह अपनी दादी के इलाज के लिए अस्पताल आया था। उसकी दादी को प्रसूति तंत्र विभाग में भर्ती किया गया था। शाम को शुभम लेबर रूम में प्रवेश कर गया जहां किसी भी पुरुष...

Last week, some 4,000 doctors in Maharashtra went on strike to protest against assaults on resident doctors.  After an ultimatum issued by the Bombay high court, the doctors returned to work on March 25. Dr Mrigank Warrier explains why the resident doctors' movement is far from over. March 12, 10 pm. An accident victim, with a serious head injury, is brought to the District Civil Hospital, Dhule. After preliminary treatment by the casualty medical officer and examination by a general surgeon, he was examined by orthopaedic surgeon Dr Rohan Mhamunkar. Dr Mhamunkar informed the patient's family that if a CT scan reveals brain injury, the patient would require the expertise of a neurosurgeon and they may have to shift him to a bigger, better hospital. The reason? After 27 years of existence, the Dhule hospital -- which claims to provide healthcare 'not only to Dhule, Nandurbar, Jalgaon and Nashik districts, but also to districts of Madhya Pradesh and Guj...

The Supreme Court on Monday denied permission to a woman to abort her 27-week-old foetus showing signs of severe physical abnormalities. A Bench of Justices S A Bobdey and L Nageshwara Rao referred to the report of the medical board, which had examined the woman, and said that as per the opinion of the doctors, the baby may be “born alive” if the mother is allowed to abort at this stage. The court also observed that as per the doctors’ opinion, the physical condition of the woman is normal and there is no risk to her health. “As regard to the foetus, the report states that, if the pregnancy is terminated in the 27th week, there is a possibility that the baby may be born alive,” the Bench observed. “We don’t consider it appropriate to direct the petitioner (woman) to terminate the foetus,” the court said. Solicitor-General Ranjit Kumar told the Bench that as per the report of the medical board of the Mumbai-based K E M Hospital, the foetus has severe physical abnormalities...

“We know stoppage of work amounts to contempt of court and violation of the oath we took upon entering the medical profession, but what can we do when violent attacks have become such a regular feature of our lives?” This statement by a student-doctor at the medicine department of the Lokmanya Tilak Municipal General Hospital and Medical College in suburban Mumbai sums up the problem that drove Maharashtra’s 4,000-odd medical students to bunk work for six days – starting Sunday. Since March 12, 2017, there have been six instances of patients’ kith and kin attacking doctors at public hospitals across Latur, Dhule, Nashik, Sangli and Mumbai districts. A particularly glaring incident was the assault on Dhule civil hospital doctor Rohan Mahamunkar, who was admitted to the intensive care unit after being blinded in one eye. The state’s resident doctors have two major demands: one, restrictions on the entry of patients’ relatives to ensure that mobs don’t gather at hospitals and, t...

Robert Clements “What shall we play today?” asks India. “Doctor Bashing!” reply the people, as they walk to a hospital with iron rods and sticks. Last evening, I had a visitor, a young medical student from one of Maharashtra’s medical colleges where doctors are getting bashed up with increasing frequency! I had seen her as a child, studious, intelligent, an intensive public speaker, had watched as she’d put heart and soul into her books, finally to win a seat in medicine. She had won. Was overjoyed. And now fearful. “I knew the doctor they beat up,” she whispered, “He was an excellent teacher, and an insightful physician, now the mob have made him a cripple! Is that what’s going to happen to us?” Yes, is that what is going to happen to some in the medical profession? There have been over two hundred and fifty cases of such thrashing of doctors in Maharashtra alone! And it’s happening all over India. In the days of old, when an influential patient fell ill or wa...