Madurai Medical College reopens for offline classes

Dean of MMC Dr A Rathinavel said that the medical college followed the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) issued by the State government to ensure the safety of the medicos and the college staff.

"All students have to produce negative RT-PCR test reports while joining. For those who have not taken the test, we ensure their negativity first. Masks and sanitizers have been made mandatory. Further, crowding in any area is banned. We have also discussed and instructed faculty members on how the classes will be divided and organized," Dr V Dhanalakshmi, vice-principal told Times of India.

The vice-principal confirmed that theory and practical classes will be arranged in a way that can help to maintain physical distancing. The faculty members have welcomed the students who have returned to the campus for classes. Initially, there were concerns of low attendance on the first day, however, the vice-principal stated that the medical students of all the years pursuing undergraduate and postgraduate medical courses have re-joined their classes after nearly four months.

Though the medicos and faculty entered the campus after ensuring a RT-PCR negative test report, faculty and students are following all the protocols to stop any possible spread of Covid-19. Last year a few students at Madurai Medical College had tested Covid-19 positive after which they had to be screened and isolated.

Previously Medical Dialogues reported that the medical colleges across the Tamil Nadu reopening for offline classes on Monday after a gap of four months saw a positive response, however, 2 medicos of K. A. P. Viswanathan Government Medical College, Tiruchy tested positive for Covid-19 after undergoing mandatory RT-PCR tests to join offline classes.