IIT Madras plans to set up School of Medical Sciences to offer MBBS, MD degrees

Chennai: Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras, one of the premier engineering institutes that has provided education and research in science and technology for nearly 70 years, is planning to enter the field of medical education soon.

IIT Madras is planning to set up a School of Medical Sciences that will offer medical degrees, including MBBS, MD and PhD, Director Prof. V. Kamakoti said in an exclusive interview with India Today.

Professor Kamakoti said, "IIT Madras will certainly launch a school of medical sciences. We want to give medical degrees, and I think that will be something which will make the institute much bigger."

The move would take the institute into a new area of education and research after producing engineers who work on machines, software and systems for decades. 

The institute has already taken its first step towards combining medicine and technology. In May 2023, IIT Madras started its Department of Medical Sciences and Technology, which currently offers a four-year undergraduate programme in Medical Sciences and Engineering, along with MS and PhD programmes.

The programme combines medical sciences with engineering, with students studying areas including physiological systems, machine learning and medical imaging. Its specialisations include AI in healthcare, medical image analysis, medical device development, quantitative pharmacology and drug design.

While the existing department prepares students for careers as medical technologists and physician-scientists, the new school would aim to train doctors who can practise medicine.

Why enter the medical field?

Speaking to India Today about the reason behind opening a medical school, Professor Kamakoti bluntly said, "Any technology institution must start a medical school. Otherwise, as a country, we cannot survive the medical market."

He explained that he got the inspiration from the COVID-19 pandemic, which exposed how much of modern medicine now runs on technology, and how risky it is for a country to buy that technology from abroad rather than build it.

Kamaoti opined that bringing doctors and engineers together could help develop new medical equipment, diagnostic tools, and other technologies within the country, as India still imports a large share of its high-end medical equipment.

The plan, however, cannot be implemented simply by IIT Madras deciding to start an MBBS programme. Medical education in India is governed by the National Medical Commission, the regulator that decides who may run a medical college and grant an MBBS, the standard degree a doctor earns. 

A medical college also requires a teaching hospital, where medical students receive clinical training and gain practical experience by treating patients. IIT Madras would therefore have to develop the required medical infrastructure and comply with NMC norms before it can begin an MBBS programme.

Previously, IIT Kharagpur applied for approval to start a postgraduate MD course. 

Although IIT Madras' 2023 department already partners with leading city hospitals, while its engineers work beside the clinicians, the map to follow is hospital first, regulator's nod later.

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