Archive for month: June, 2024

New Delhi: Stating that the details sought under the RTI includes third-party information, the National Medical Commission (NMC) has refused to disclose the names of the medical colleges that fell short on faculty counts and other teaching infrastructure.

Recently activist Dr. KV Babu filed an application under the Right to Information Act seeking the details of the notices issued by the NMC Undergraduate Medical Education Board (UGMEB) to the medical colleges for deficiencies in Clinical Material and staff during the period from 01/01/2023 to 30/04/2024. He also sought to know the details of the fine imposed or the action taken by the NMC UG Board from 01/01/2023 to 30/04/2024.

In response, the Apex medical regulatory body in India has said that the concerned information includes third party information. “Since the information sought by you, includes third party information, hence the same is exempted for as per Section 8(1) (j) of the Right to Information Act, 2005,” the reply to Dr. Babu’s RTI application stated.

This comes at a time when reportedly more than 80% of Indian Medical Colleges were issued show-cause notices by NMC for not meeting even the minimum criteria laid down by the Commission.

Also Read: NMC slaps show-cause notice to nearly 500 out of 706 medical colleges for MSR non-compliance: Report

Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that around 500 medical colleges out of the 706 colleges across the country have received show-cause notices from the Apex Medical Commission for failure to comply with the Minimum Standard Requirements.

During the NMC inspection conducted at these medical colleges, officials noted absenteeism of faculties, inadequate and poor infrastructure, and student grievances on issues such as ragging, inadequate hostels, and poor student-teacher relationships. Following this, the Commission imposed penalties ranging from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 50 lakh and going up to Rs 1 crore.

Commenting on the matter, Dr. Babu KV told Medical Dialogues, “The purpose of my RTI with the NMC was to know the deficiencies of faculties and clinical materials in various medical colleges so as to get an assessment about the functioning of various medical colleges and to get a clear idea about the standards of UG medical medical education in the country. To my surprise it was declined citing third party information. It should be noted that the erstwhile MCI regularly uploaded the inspection details on the website and functioned in a transparent way. It looks like the NMC which replaced the NMC is functioning in an opaque manner.”

However, referring to the issue a top NMC official told The Telegraph that NMC has done away with the MCI’s practice of inspections. Nowadays, assessments are made based on self-declaration forms that each medical college must submit to the Commission. As per the self-declaration forms, nearly 600 out of 684 medical colleges running MBBS courses in India have deficiencies and therefore such colleges are liable for fine. 

Explaining that the type and volume of deficiencies vary from college to college, the official added, “Some have 10 per cent, some have 50 per cent, some have 80 per cent — we want all the colleges to score 100 per cent…We give colleges time to address the gaps. If they don’t fulfil, we then impose fines. Colleges have started working on it (the gaps).”

Earlier, aiming to ensure the optimum level of transparency in functioning and facilities available in the medical colleges, NMC recently put the details of 684 medical colleges running MBBS courses in the public domain.

These details can be accessed under the “Annual Declaration” tab on the Apex Medical Regulator’s (NMC) website. The Commission has uploaded various details of the medical colleges including the name and details of the medical college, application id, student admission details, hospital details, clinical load details, death/birth details in the locality, faculty details, and OT details.

Referring to this, the NMC official told The Telegraph that the public could correlate the details provided with the required NMC prescribed standards to determine which medical colleges have inadequate infrastructure. 

Also Read: Annual Declaration: NMC Publicises Details of 684 Medical Colleges Running MBBS Course

New Delhi: In an unexpected turn of events, the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for Postgraduate (NEET PG) 2024 has been postponed just 12 hours before it was scheduled to take place. The decision was taken as precautionary measure by the Union Health Ministry amid the ongoing controversies concerning the NEET exam as well as the UGC NET exam 

“Taking into consideration, the recent incidents of allegations regarding the integrity of certain competitive examinations, Ministry of Health has decided to undertake a thorough assessment of the robustness of processes of NEET-PG Entrance Examination, conducted by National Board of Examinations for medical students. It has accordingly been decided, as precautionary measure to postpone the NEET-PG Entrance Examination, scheduled to be held tomorrow i.e. 23rd June, 2024,” the Union Health Ministry stated in a release

“Fresh date of this examination will be notified at the earliest,” the release added

“Ministry of Health sincerely regrets the inconvenience caused to the students. This decision has been taken in the best interests of the students and to maintain the sanctity of examination process,” the government stated in its release 

Doctors are seeing red at the last minute decision of the government.  The move has indeed shocked doctors, many of whom would be preparing for a sleep before the exam, Dr Manish Jangra, Founder, FAIMA highlighted that apart from being a temporary shock, this will indeed add to the agony of the students. “Many students had booked hotels, flights. The government has wasted their precious time. The integrity of the government is definitely in question, with such moves showing that the government is incapable of conducting a exam planned so many months ago. Many students wanted to join job after exam to survive through this phase. Now they are stuck. Very sad to hear this.”

More updates on this story soon….

New Delhi: To prevent any possible commercial dealings involving foreign citizens in the country, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) has written to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) asking them to educate the foreign nationals regarding the guidelines and legal responsibilities concerning organ transplantation procedures in India.   

According to the letter, the Union Health Ministry has asked both ministries to ensure that information regarding organ transplant laws is prominently displayed at airports and on the Bureau of Immigration’s web portals. This measure aims to enhance the accessibility and awareness of these laws among a broader audience. 

In the letter dated June 19, Union health secretary, Apurva Chandra said, “It is essential for these foreign nationals visiting India for organ transplants to understand the specific guidelines and legal requirements that regulate the process of organ transplantation in India.”

Also read- Only Registered Hospitals Should Engage In Removal, Storage Or Transplantation Of Human Organs: SC Seeks Govt Reply On PIL

Further, the letter stated, “Organ and tissue donation and transplantation are regulated in India under the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act (THOTA), 1994. The law prohibits any commercial dealings in human organs or tissues. However, it allows an Indian to donate her organs to a close relative—spouse, son, daughter, father, mother, brother, sister, grandfather, grandmother, grandson or granddaughter.

Foreign donors or recipients require prior approval from the Authorization Committee for organ or tissue transplantation. Besides, a senior official—of the embassy of the country of origin in India—is required to certify the relationship between the donor and the recipient as per form 21.”

“In this case, foreign patients needing organ(s) from a deceased donor for transplant can also seek registration in India through their treating hospital, after which their name will be included in the waiting list registry. However, such cases would be considered for only when there is no Indian patient, is available to take that organ in the whole country,” as reported by Mint. 

The Union Health Ministry in April had asked all states and UTs to investigate any violations and take appropriate action, including suspension of registration, against hospitals performing illegal organ transplants.

In a letter to all states and UTs, Dr Atul Goel, Director General of Health Services (DGHS), Government of India, urged to ensure regular collection and sharing of data of all transplant cases, including those of foreigners, with the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO) on a monthly basis. The Ministry had issued the direction around two weeks after an organ trafficking racket, involving Bangladeshi nationals, being run in Haryana and Rajasthan was busted.

Medical Dialogues team had earlier reported that aiming to stop the illegal trading of human organs, the Union Government has sent out an alert to all States/Union Territories on websites and social media groups engaged in such activities, calling for strict action in this regard.

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) has made specific references to certain websites/social media groups that are offering huge money for kidneys and other organs. One such publication was in the name of a popular hospital in Karnataka. In that post, an offer of Rs 5 crore was made for a kidney matching certain parameters.

The Union Government shared the web link and other such social media posts that were being shared regularly and said that such activities were punishable offences under Section 18 of the Act with fine ranging from Rs 20 lakh to Rs 1 crore and imprisonment ranging from 5 years to 10 years. Such illegal activities were a major hindrance to the national organ transplantation programme.

The National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO) is a national-level organisation under the DGHS. It was set up in pursuance to mandate given to the Central Government to set up a network for organ procurement distribution and to maintain a national registry for the purpose of surveillance of organ donation and transplantation in the country.

Dr Anil Kumar, director of NOTTO said, “Foreigners mostly come to private hospitals, and private hospitals must educate such patients before they come to the country. However, It is not being done properly. That’s why Indian high commissions, Bureau of Immigration and the MEA have been requested to display these messages to educate foreign patients”.

Also read- Centre Sends Alerts To States, UTs On Websites, Social Media Involved In Illegal Trading Of Human Organs