DMSF follows the course pattern as per the new NMC Gazette

There were so many speculations surrounding medical education in foreign countries, by putting a full stop to end all the speculations around the rumors the National Medical Commission has now notified the National Medical Commission (Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate) Regulations, 2021. The regulations will come into effect as per the official gazette notification from 18th November 2021. The regulation shall be applicable for all the admissions done after the above-mentioned date. The government has also confirmed that the American Education System is 100% valid which includes the Philippines, thereby DMSF follows the course pattern as per the new NMC Gazette.

But the above said regulations would not be applicable for foreign medical graduates who have already acquired a medical degree in a foreign medical university and for the candidates who are already pursuing medical education in foreign countries before the regulation comes into force. The NMC has clearly stated that those who are currently pursuing their medical education in foreign countries would be governed by the former regulation. Let us see in detail.

New Regulations- NMC Gazette

Though the new regulations are favorable for students who are already studying medicine abroad, for those who are still planning to study MBBS abroad, the regulations have brought many changes, which might make medical education in foreign countries less lucrative. The new regulation spells out that, the candidate studying MBBS abroad shall complete the medical course within ten years from the date of joining the course. It has also stated that foreign medical graduate shall not be granted permanent registration unless he/she has:

(ⅰ) should have undergone the medical degree in a foreign country with a minimum duration of 54 months.

(ⅱ) Should have undergone internship from the same medical institution for a minimum duration of twelve months.

(ⅲ) Should have studied mandatory subjects that are specified in the Schedule-Ⅰ

• They should have registered with the professional regulatory body or the authority to grant a license for practicing medicine in the respective judiciary of the country where the medical degree is awarded to the students and also at par with the license to practice medicine given to citizens of that country.
• Should have undergone the supervised internship in India for twelve months
• Must have cleared the National Exit Test or any other examination conducted by the commission.

These regulations may be doom for certain foreign medical universities where the duration of the course is less than 54 months/4.5 years. Though certain medical colleges abroad have proper

The regulations also spell out the criteria to recognize the Foreign Medical Graduate that are applying for the license and having permanent registration to practice medicine in India, It includes the following:

The principle for licensing the foreign medical graduate to practice medicine in India is to ensure that foreign medical graduates fulfill the requirement of the education standard to be commensurate with the medical graduates in India.

The Eligibility criteria for the primary medical graduates, outside India Are mentioned below:

(ⅰ) Duration of the course for the leading subjects required for the primary medical qualification

• Any individual who wishes to study MBBS abroad should have undergone theory, practical, and internship training that is equivalent to the MBBS program in India
• The duration of the internship course should be twelve months for the course referred to in clause (a), for the same the foreign universities should have hands-on training in clinical subjects such as community medicine, General Medicine, Psychiatry, Paediatrics, General Surgery, Anaesthesia, Obstetrics and Gynaecology Orthopaedics, Otorhinolaryngology, Ophthalmology, Dermatology, Emergency, Lab services, and their specialties.

(ⅱ) Content of the course

• The internship program shall be equivalent to the MBBS degree in India, as per the regulations on Graduate Medical Education, In 1997 and the subsequent amendments, the degree shall include the mentioned subjects and are duly recognized under subsection (2) of section 61 of the Act;
• The curriculum shall be made available for the authorities through the official website of the universities at the time of joining the course.

(ⅲ) Location of the Medical University

Students pursuing their medical course in abroad countries must have completed the entire course in that particular university and no part of the course shall be completed in any other university.

(ⅳ) Duration of the course

The medical course in foreign shall be completed within ten years from the date of joining the course.

As per the regulations, the Foreign Medical Institutions where the duration of the course is below 4.5 years the degree from that university shall not be recognized by the commission. While many of these institutions come up with the setup of hybrid training, the mixture of teaching and training shall be considered invalid from this year onwards.

The regulations spell out that the Foreign Medical Graduates will have to do additional training in India apart from the NExT exam they will have to write to seek a license. It is also said that many institutions from the Philippines, Armenia, and Georgia provide medical courses with less than 4.5 years of duration. These institutions situated in abroad countries will have a difficult time. Davao Medical School Foundation follows the medical course pattern as per the regulation released in the gazette.

DMSF follows the course pattern as per the new NMC Gazette

After a successful meeting, the new gazette was released on 18th Nov 2021, along with the authorities of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Department, New Delhi. Later a meeting was held on Nov 29, 2021, with Shri Bhupendrabhai Patel (The Chief Minister of Gujarat) and with Shri Rushikesh Patil ( Health Minister of Gujarat), the gazette and the recommendations were endorsed. One of the key points that should be taken into consideration and clarified is that the Worldwide American system of Education including the Philippines is valid.

As per the Gazette, the clause includes he/she “ undergone a course leading to a foreign medical degree with a minimum duration of fifty-four months”, here the “course” mentioned includes Pre-Medicine, Pre-Clinical, Language Course is usually from 18- 24 months. So this course, which is leading to a foreign medical degree, is MD (Doctor of Medicine), which is of the duration of 48 months. As per the gazette, the total duration of the course is 54 months+12 months of Internship: with the minimum requirement for the duration of the course being 66 months.

Course Details of DMSF

Davao Medical School Foundation follows the American Standard of Medical Education, the duration at DMSF is provided below:

It is thereby proved that the MBBS Course at Davao Medical School Foundation (DMSF) is 100% valid as per the new gazette, As per the higher authorities and the topmost lawyers, there is no concern at all.

Conclusion

While India is the home to the largest population of youth, if the youths of the country are properly taught, they are capable enough to meet the global demands, in particular to the field of medicine. While the country is striving very hard to raise the number of medical seats, the pandemic has taught the scarcity of medical professionals and still falls short in meeting the medical needs of the country. MBBS in Philippines came as a boon to Indian Students. The recently released gazette has raised enough uncertainty.

With so much speculation and rumors circulating the new gazette. This week has brought relaxation for all the students and the concerned parents who have planned to study MBBS in Philippines. The Government Authorities have confirmed that the American Education system is 100% valid which includes MBBS study in Philippines. We advise the parents and students to kindly refrain from fake videos, messages that have been circulating the past few days, as DMSF follows the course pattern as per the new NMC Gazette.