NMC notifies regulations for medical internship; one week of AYUSH training included

NEW DELHI: No medical graduate will be eligible for permanent registration to practice medicine in India unless they undergo the compulsory rotating medical internship in India, as per the latest notice released by the National Medical Commission (NMC). One week mandatory internship training in AYUSH included in the regulation.

According to the compulsory rotating medical internship regulation, “Every candidate shall be required to undergo a compulsory rotating medical internship (CRMI) for a minimum period of twelve months, to the satisfaction of the college authorities and the University concerned after passing the final Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) examination/ National Exit Exam for MBBS (Next), so as to be eligible for the award of the MBBS degree by the respective Universities.”

The internship has to be completed within two years of passing the final MBBS or Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE) or NExT Step-1 examination, whenever in force, the notice read.

However, the minimum duration of compulsory rotating medical internship may be extended appropriately by a reasonable period on recommendation by the College or University for reasons including insufficient period of attendance or any exigency such as disasters or unforeseen circumstances in the country.

The NMC has included one week internship training in AYUSH under the electives. It also informed, “If the college does not have facilities for Electives in AYUSH, an Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with any Government institution in the same town/ city / district may be established by the college; training must be certified by the mentor with the concurrence of college/ institution where the candidate is enrolled for MBBS.”

On July 7, the NMC had announced that it was compulsory for undergraduate students pursuing MBBS degrees to undergo internship training in AYUSH -- ayurveda, yoga, unani, siddha and homeopathy and sowa rigpa.

However, the Indian Medical Association (IMA), the Federation of All India Medical Associations (FAIMA) as well as the Federation of Resident Doctors’ Associations (FORDA) opposed the NMC’s draft regulations on medical internships.

The doctors' bodies had said “the addition of seven days of elective posting in Indian medicine which they have not studied altogether in their graduation period and won’t be practicing in the future too will lead to waste of time and energy”.

Eligibility for completion of CRMI

• The applicant should have successfully completed the MBBS course of any University from a college or institution approved and recognised by the NMC and listed by the Undergraduate Medical Education Board under the provisions of section 35 of the Act.
• The qualifying examination for Indian Medical Graduates shall be in accordance with the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission at the time of commencement of internship
• All Indian Medical Graduates shall complete their entire period of compulsory rotating internship training (CRMI) in the institution where they have pursued and completed their Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS);
• One-year approved service in the Armed Forces Medical Services, after passing the final MBBS examination shall be considered as equivalent to the pre- registration training detailed above; and such training shall, as far as possible, be at the Base or General Hospital. However NExT step 2 will be mandatory for these candidates also.

All Foreign Medical Graduates, unless otherwise notified shall be required to undergo CRMI at par with Indian Medical Graduates after the National Exit Test Step-1 after NExT becomes operational.

Medical colleges or institutions may allow up to 7.5 per cent of their permitted quota of interns to accommodate internships by Foreign Medical Graduates.

Further, the recent notice said, all interns shall be paid stipend as fixed by the appropriate authority applicable to the institution/ University or State. However, the NMC said that stipend may not be paid during any period of extension except in the case of maternity or paternity leave or medical leave, as may be recommended and approved by the Medical Board.