Family adoption will enrich medical education
There has been just criticism that medical education in India has become disconnected from rural reality as it was mostly taught in hospitals attached to medical colleges in highly urbanised locations By K Srinath Reddy Earlier this year, the National Medical Commission (NMC) advised medical colleges to alter the pattern of medical education by connecting undergraduate students to families in rural communities. The ‘family adoption programme’ links each medical student to three to five rural families. The student would need to visit these families once a month. With supportive supervision from a faculty member of the college, the student would get acquainted with the health problems of the family members, chart their course and assist in their management through facilitation of telehealth consultations and referrals to healthcare facilities if need be. The objectives of this reform, which would supplement the standard medical curriculum, are to orient young medical students to commonly...