AYUSH practitioners to address the shortage of doctors in villages

Even though the previous attempts to regulate the framework of allopathic practice by Ayush practitioners have failed to get recognition from MCI, the thinking in the ministry this time is that Ayush practitioners and paramedics can be relied on for support in administering basic medicine for the rural population.

Sources in the Health Ministry say the Medical Council of India (MCI) and the Indian Medical Association (IMA) are both being consulted on the proposal and have been asked to come up with modalities. A ministry official said, “We are in advanced stages of discussions with the MCI and the IMA on the contours of the new proposal. Compulsory rural posting of MBBS doctors is not working out. That plan has been shelved. There is resistance to mandatory rural posting from doctors. So we are talking to the MCI and IMA on alternative solutions. One potential solution is training AYUSH practitioners and paramedics in standard treatment protocols and posting them at rural healthcare settings where shortage of doctors is a huge challenge. The MCI is working on this proposal and the IMA has been consulted. We have told the IMA that if MBBS doctors won’t go to villages to administer medicine, someone will go. We want the IMA on board.”, as reported by The Tribune.

“We can fix accountability for referrals and track treatment access to the patient. Ayush practitioners and paramedics can both be trained in administering basic medicine and in referral protocols. It is better to have some treatment access to the rural population than to leave them to quacks,” said a ministry source.