TEQ Rules 2022: NMC spells out Foreign PG Medical Qualifications for Equivalence

Comprehensively laying down the fundamentals for standardising recruitment of doctors towards their entry into medical academia, these TEQ Regulations 2022 published via a gazette issued by the NMC's PG Medical Education Board, are enforceable from February 14th this year.

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 regulations include "General norms regarding Foreign Postgraduate Qualifications for Equivalence" mandating the prerequisites for teachers with foreign PG qualifications joining into Indian medical academia.

The norms specify that in the case of a person with Postgraduate medical qualifications awarded in the United Kingdom, United States of America, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, his qualifications can be considered as equivalent qualifications with MD/MS/DM/MCh, as the case may be if they fulfil the following criteria in those countries.

United Kingdom: They should have completed Certificate of Completion of Specialist Training (CCST) or equivalent training with final FRCS/FRCP degree and registered in that country to practice in that speciality.

United States of America and Canada: They should have MD qualification with Residency Training Certificate in the relevant speciality in the USA. For Super specialities, successful completion of Residency Training Programme along with completion of accredited Fellowship programme in the relevant super speciality is essential.

Australia and New Zealand: They should have completed a supervised training programme culminating in the Fellowship of the respective Specialty (FRACS/FRACP). For Super Specialties, a minimum of two years of the supervised sub-speciality Fellowship programme in the respective sub-speciality is essential.

They should have done their complete duration of training in those countries and be registered there to practice in that speciality. "In such cases, he will be eligible for the post of Assistant Professor in the respective department and his subsequent promotions would be as per Teachers Eligibility Qualifications in Medical Institutions Regulations – 2022", the regulations stated.

Other qualifications will be evaluated by the NMC as and when a reference is received.

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."

Click here to access the NMC TEQ Rules 2022.