According to the National Medical Commission (NMC), Foreign Medical Graduates (FMGs) who had to return to India, in their final and second last year from foreign medical colleges due to the Covid pandemic or the Russia-Ukraine war, will have to mandatorily complete clinical clerkship. The FMGs will be eligible for a Compulsory Rotating Medical Internship (CRMI) or clinical medical rotatory internship only after completing the clerkship. For second-last year students the clerkship is for two years, while for the final year students, the clerkship is for one year.
The mandate has irked the FMGs who are preparing for their Foreign Medical Graduates Examination (FMGE) as this has come as an added burden. Most students have no clarity over the newly introduced clerkship.
Dr Aruna V Vanikar, president, Undergraduate Medical Education Board, NMC, talking to Education Times says, "In lieu of the shortage of training at their foreign medical colleges, NMC has come up with mandatory clinical clerkship. Students must complete the clerkship before the internship if they have returned to India after finishing the course. However, there is a mandatory two-year clerkship for the students who returned in the penultimate year."
In 2021, NMC introduced a mobility programme for the first and second-year students. Most of the FMGs who were brought back to India under 'Operation Ganga' from Ukraine were allowed to migrate or transfer to any country other than India to finish their medical training. On their return, they were asked to undergo the entire training as per the new FMGL regulations 2021, says Dr Vanikar. The clerkship will help students understand medical training in India. "In India, students receive practical medical training along with the theory during the MBBS, while during the internship, students get a chance to brush up on their existing practical knowledge. Le Whereas FMGs often do not get sufficient practical training, clerkships will help them bridge the gap. NMC is being considerate to all FMGs and this will be their last chance to get absorbed in India. Earlier, NMC had made C clinical training mandatory for the Indian students
who had to take online classes due to the Covid pandemic adds Dr Vanikar. NMC released a list of frequently asked questions (FAQs) related to FMGs, answering questions related to the cap on qualifying for the licensing exam. The notification read, "The time limit for appearing in FMGE/NEXT will be 10 years from the completion of their training/course in foreign medical institution."
The terms and conditions of the cap on qualifying the exam has further worried the students. Rahul Kumar, leader, FMGL Students' Association says, "According to the FMGL's regulations 2021, FMGs were provided 10 years to complete their medical degree from a foreign institute. On the other hand, NMC in its November 22, 2023, notification stated that the time limit for appearing in the FMGE/Next will be 10 years starting from the completing of the course
in a foreign medical institution. And now, the Commission in its December 7, 2023 notification stated that FMGs will be re- quired to complete their internship within 10 years from the date of joining their foreign medical institutions to procure qualification equivalent to MBBS in India. These directives have added to the confusion. "It has become really difficult to understand what NMC is trying to do with FMGs," adds Kumar.
Ukraine-returned medical The graduate, Dr Farman from Mu limit zaffarnagar, UP, had to come ExT back to India in 2022 during the last semester of the fifth year (penultimate year). However, after waiting in India, Dr Farman decided to leave for war-torn Ukraine to complete his final year on campus. "I have completed my medical graduation and have been preparing for FMGE. I am confused about the NMC's guidelines and their capping provisions, as their it makes my tenure of clerkship uncertain. Dr Shahroz from Baran, Rajasthan, who is national coordinator of Indian Students' Group in China, was enrolled for an MBBS degree at China's Nan- tong Medical University in 2017. Due to the Covid pandemic, he returned to India in January 2020, while in his sixth semester.
He returned to China to complete his MBBS and is now preparing for FMGE. "I am not happy with the decision, we have already suffered due to Covid, " he says. Reacting to the students' grievances related to spending extra years on clinical exposure, Dr Vanikar says, "After the November 18 publication of the FMGL Regulations 2021, the NMC board members personally spoke to over 2,000 students to dissuade them from going to foreign shores for medical education, but they have still moved out and later they blame the NMC." uncertain. Dr Shahroz from Baran, Rajasthan, who is national coordinator of Indian Students' Group in China, was enrolled for an MBBS degree at China's Nan- tong Medical University in 2017. Due to the Covid pandemic, he returned to India in January 2020, while in his sixth semester. He returned to China to complete his MBBS and is now preparing for FMGE. "I am not happy with the decision, we have already suffered due to Covid, " he says. Reacting to the students' grievances related to spending extra years on clinical exposure, Dr Vanikar says, "After the November 18 publication of the FMGL Regulations 2021, the NMC board members personally spoke to over 2,000 students to dissuade them from going to foreign shores for medical education, but they have still moved out and later they blame the NMC."
Published on - Times of India
Date - 18/12/2023
