Delay in Bringing Revised Graduate Medical Regulations: Court notice to MCI, Health Ministry

MCI Regulations on Graduate Medical Education, 1997, is the foundation document that governs the undergraduate medical education that is MBBS education in India and contains the entire protocols on teaching modality, curriculum requirements, conduct, migration from medical colleges and various other details governing the MBBS course in India

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has sought response of the Centre and the Medical Council of India (MCI) on a plea claiming that there is a delay in implementing the revised graduate medical education regulation.

A bench of Chief Justice Rajendra Menon and Justice V K Rao issued notice to authorities and directed them to file their responses within four weeks and list the matter for further hearing on May 3.

The petition filed by Indrajit Laxmanrao Khandekar said there has been a tremendous change in the field of medical examination worldwide and India has not witnessed the revision of the graduate medical education regulation (GMER) for undergraduate medical students since 1997, resulting into the adoption of outdated practices and study material by the students.

It sought direction to authorities to release and implement the revised graduate medical education regulation (as amended till date) forthwith.

The plea, filed through advocate Gaurav Kumar Bansal, said "medical students of our country, due to red tape attitude of respondents are forced to learn the outstanding practices" which is not only affecting the medical jurisprudence, but also hampering the criminal justice delivery system of the country.

The petitioner had earlier approached the MCI through RTI and was informed that the revised draft of the graduation medical regulation 2018 was pending for approval.

Medical Council of India Regulations on Graduate Medical Education, 1997, is the foundation document that governs the undergraduate medical education that is MBBS education in India and contains the entire protocols on teaching modality, curriculum requirements, conduct, migration from medical colleges and various other details governing the MBBS course in India

Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that the MCI Board of Governors (BOG), had in November 2018 approved the changes in the revised "Competency-based UG Curriculum". MCI has clarified that the Competency Based Undergraduate Curriculum will be implemented from August 2019, i.e. MBBS batch admitted in first year. Batches admitted and studying currently in MBBS shall continue with existing Curriculum.

According to the apex medical regulator, competency-based Medical Education provides an effective outcome-based strategy where various domains of teaching including teaching-learning methods and assessment form the framework of competencies. Keeping this objective as the core ingredient, the Medical Council of India with the help of a panel of experts drawn from across the country laid the basic framework for the revised undergraduate medical curriculum.