Health Bulletin 17/April/2023

Here are the top health stories for the day:

NEET UG 2023: NTA revises eligibility criteria for Indian candidates abroad

The NEET exam conducting body National Testing Agency (NTA) has revised the eligibility criteria for Indian candidates abroad seeking MBBS, BDS or AYUSH admissions in Indian institutes. Now, Indian candidates abroad including foreign nationals, Indian nationals, NRIs, Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs), and People of Indian Origin (PIOs) are all eligible for admission to MBBS, BDS and AYUSH colleges via the NEET entrance test subject to respective rules and regulations.

The confirmation of this effect comes from a recent notification released by National Testing Agency (NTA) on its official website wherein a corrigendum has been issued on the eligibility criteria for Indian medical aspirants living abroad.

For more details, check out the link given below:

NEET 2023: Indian Candidates Abroad Now Eligible For Admission To MBBS, BDS, AYUSH Colleges, Says NTA

Govt fixes rates of COVID tests for pvt labs

With the number of COVID-19 cases increasing every day, the State Health Department of Uttar Pradesh has fixed the rates of COVID 19 tests at private pathology and diagnostic centres.

Delhi reported 24 deaths due to COVID

There has been a surge in the number of COVID cases in Delhi in the past few days. According to Times of India report, the national capital witnessed a total of 24 coronavirus-related deaths in the last seven days.

State Health data showed that Delhi reported 1,634 fresh cases of coronavirus with the positivity rate standing at 29.68 percent on Sunday. 

Surgery on wrong leg; delay in referring patient: Medical Council suspends licences of two doctors over negligence, misconduct

Taking stringent action against two doctors who have been found guilty of medical negligence and misconduct, the Telangana State Medical Council (TSMC) has suspended their licenses by removing them from the medical register for a period of 6 and 3 months and taking away their permanent registration certificate for the duration of the punishment imposed.

According to the medical council orders issued TSMC Chairman V Rajalingam on April 12, based on Regulation 8.2 of The Indian Medical Council (professional conduct, etiquette and ethics) Regulations of 2002, Dr Karan M Patel’s name has been removed from the medical register for six months for the surgery on the wrong leg while Dr CH Srikanth has been suspended for three months for allegedly delaying in referring a case to a higher centre.

For more details, check out the link given below:

Surgery On Wrong Leg; Delay In Referring Patient: Medical Council Suspends Licences Of Two Doctors Over Negligence, Misconduct

Merck-Moderna vaccine helps keep patients free from skin cancer 

An experimental mRNA cancer vaccine developed by Moderna Inc and Merck & Co cut the risk of death or recurrence of the most deadly skin cancer by 44 percent compared with Merck's immunotherapy Keytruda alone, U.S. researchers reported at a medical meeting on Sunday.

The findings suggest that adding a personalized cancer vaccine based on mRNA technology to Keytruda, which revs up the immune response, could prolong the time patients have without recurrence or death, said Dr Jeffrey Weber, NYU Langone Perlmutter Cancer Center, who presented the findings.

For more details, check out the link given below:

Moderna, Merck Cancer Vaccine Plus Keytruda Delays Skin Cancer Return