NMC releases Teachers Eligibility Qualifications in Medical Institutions Regulations 2022

These TEQ Regulations 2022 published via a gazette issued by the NMC's PG Medical Education Board, are enforceable from February 14th this year. Earlier, the NMC had released the draft of these regulations seeking feedback from various stakeholders and authorities. Now, after thorough deliberation, the TEQ Regulations 2022 have been released for immediate implementation.

According to the rules, appointment and promotion of faculty in various teaching specialities imparting graduate and postgraduate medical education in medical institutions, falling within the purview of the National Medical Commission, has to be in accordance with the minimum qualifications and experience prescribed in these Regulations, so as to maintain a standard of teaching in medical institutions.

These TEQ rules specify the number of patterns starting with who can be classified as a medical teacher, while also specifying a number of courses that doctors will now have to clear to be eligible for various faculty posts.

The guidelines include norms for appointing faculty in medical institutions, rules to determine the equivalent qualification of DNB with MD/MS and DM/MCh, eligibility required to be designated as a postgraduate guide, norms for appointing faculty and their promotions, for determining teaching designations for Consultants/ Specialists for constituting a medical college or commencing a postgraduate course, for determining the teaching designations for Consultants/Specialists in Medical Institutions of Defence Services, and rules for appointing visiting faculties.

Besides, the subject of Faculty appointment and promotion has been separately addressed in the Regulations as NMC has mentioned the norms for Faculty appointment and promotion in Broad Specialties (MD/MS) which are in existence for more than 10 years, which were established by erstwhile Medical Council of India (MCI) and are functional for less than ten years, and also the new Broad Specialty courses proposed to be instituted by NMC in separate tables.

Another table of the regulations deals with the appointment and promotion in the Department of Dentistry in a Medical College. Further, the norms for appointing faculty and their promotion in Super Specialties (DM/MCh) for where the course was established by erstwhile MCI and is functional for more or less than ten years, and new courses proposed to be initiated by the NMC have also been mentioned in the Regulations. These Regulations also have specified the Appointment of Faculty during the transition period.

Further, the index of teaching specialities has been mentioned in the rules and NMC has clarified, "The nomenclature of the specialities/subjects shall be the same as that contained in the Postgraduate Medical Education Regulations 2022."

Apart from these, the Regulations have further spelt out norms regarding the Foreign Postgraduate Qualifications for viewing them as equivalent.

General Norms for Appointment of Faculty in Medical Institutions

Every appointing authority before making an appointment to a teaching post in a medical college or institution shall observe the following norms:

1 All Medical Teachers must possess a Postgraduate degree or equivalent qualification included in any one of the Schedules to the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 (102 of 1956) and National Medical Commission Act, 2019. They must also be registered in a State Medical Register or National Medical Register, except in the case of teachers with non-medical qualifications.

2 The maximum age limit up to which a person can be appointed or granted extension or reemployed in service against the posts of Teacher or Medical Superintendent or Dean or Principal or Director or, as the case may be, which are required to be filled up as per the norms of the National Medical Commission in any Medical College/ Institution for imparting Graduate and Post-Graduate medical education shall be 70 years.

3 In the Departments of Anatomy, Physiology and Biochemistry, non-medical graduates having M.Sc. (relevant medical) and PhD qualifications, granted by the recognized Medical College/Institute as regular on campus course in the subject concerned, can be appointed as Assistant Professors. A non-medical person cannot be appointed as Dean or Director or Principal or Medical Superintendent or Head of the Department. Provided that non-medical graduates appointed as Assistant Professors in the subjects of Anatomy, Physiology, Biochemistry, Pharmacology and Microbiology on the basis of MSc degree prior to the coming into force of Minimum Qualifications for Teachers in Medical Institution Regulations, 1998 on 05.12.1998, shall be eligible to be considered as Assistant Professors. However, PhD degree in concerned medical subject is essential for promotion to higher teaching position. Such persons shall also be eligible after their retirement to serve as faculty on the same position from which they had retired until the permissible age for serving in a Medical College.

4 The appointing authority may consider certain equivalent postgraduate qualifications, which may be approved by the National Medical Commission from time to time, to be the requisite recognized qualification in the subject concerned.

5 In cases where candidates with requisite experience are not available, a reference may be made by the appointing authority to the National Medical Commission for consideration on merits.

6. The position of Dean/Director/Principal of Medical College/Institution should be held by a person possessing recognized postgraduate medical degree from a recognized institution with a minimum of ten years teaching experience as Professor/Associate Professor in a Medical College/ Institution, out of which at least five years should be as Professor in the Department. Appointment to these posts shall be made on seniority-cum-merit basis. The Dean/Director/Principal of Medical Institution shall not hold the post of Head of the Department.

7 The Medical Superintendent of the affiliated teaching hospital shall possess a recognized postgraduate medical degree from a recognized Institution with a minimum of ten years teaching experience as Professor /Associate Professor in the relevant departments of the Hospital, out of which at least five years should be as Professor. Appointment to these posts shall be made on seniority-cum-merit basis. Medical Superintendent shall not occupy the position of the Head of the Department. However, he can head the unit.

8 The position of Dean/Director/Principal of Standalone Postgraduate Broad Specialty/Super Specialty Institution shall be held by a person possessing recognized postgraduate Degree from a recognized Institution with minimum of ten years teaching experience as Professor/Associate Professor, out of which, at least five years should be as Professor.

9 The Heads of the Departments of broad and super specialty courses shall possess a recognized Postgraduate broad specialty and super specialty degree, as the case may be, in the concerned specialty. This mandatory requirement is relaxed for five more years from the date of notification of this Regulation to all the Broad and Super Specialty courses which were started after 01 January, 2009.

10 Appointments to the administrative posts in Government Institutions including the in-charge arrangements, amongst eligible candidates, shall be on inter se vertical seniority based on date of entry into the Institution/Government Service.

11 The period spent by the teaching faculty towards acquisition of degree in Super Specialty subject on concurrent duties/deputation shall not be counted as teaching experience for fulfilling eligibility criteria for promotion in the concerned Super Specialty department.

12 For holders of MD - PhD in Medical Subjects, the period spent during PhD shall be considered equivalent to Senior Residency period and they are eligible for direct appointment as Assistant Professors in the concerned subject.

13 A person with MSc (Health Statistics/Medical Statistics/Bio Statistics/Statistics) with PhD from a recognized University shall be appointed as Assistant Professor of Statistics in the department of Community Medicine.

Click here to access the NMC TEQ Rules 2022.