Non-payment of stipend, Lack of seats, 3-year internship rule: Doctors meet NMC officials to raise issues of FMGs

New Delhi: Doctors representing foreign medical graduates (FMGs) recently met the National Medical Commission (NMC) officials to discuss various issues faced by medical graduates from abroad. These issues include the limited number of available internship seats for the FMGs, the issue of non-payment of stipend to the FMG Interns and the opposition against the 3-year internship rule.

Sharing about the meeting with NMC, the Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA) mentioned on X (formerly Twitter), "On a war footing now, a delegation representing #FMG interests met with officials at @NMC_IND today. Key points raised: • #Stipend for interns (currently none) •Absorption of students into various teaching and non-teaching hospitals of states. (Currently there are waiting lists for starting internship!) • Rethinking the merits and demerits of 3 year internship for a special batch of students. Hoping for a positive response from the authorities. #FMG have suffered and faced enormous challenges & discrimination. Some humanitarian approach is need of the hour."

Commenting on the matter, the General Secretary of FORDA, Dr. Sarvesh Pandey informed Medical Dialogues that the officials have given positive responses regarding the issues faced by the FMGs.

Allow FMG-Internship at Non-Teaching Hospitals: 

The FMG representatives referred to the limited number of seats available for the Foreign Medical Graduates (FMGs) to pursue the mandatory internship. They urged the authorities to allow the FMGs to undergo internships at various teaching and non-teaching hospitals of States.

Commenting on the matter, Dr. Pandey told Medical Dialogues, "Previously, it used to be easier for foreign medical graduates to get into internship programme. However, as per the NMC guidelines, FMGs can do their internship only in government hospitals. Due to this, the foreign medical graduates have to wait for months to get into an internship programme even after clearing FMGE. So, we have urged the officials to allow internship even in the institutes where the DNB programmes are conducted."

Recently, the Delhi Medical Council (DMC) also wrote to the Apex Medical Commission seeking a validation of FMG internship in Non-Teaching Hospitals.

Medical Dialogues had last year reported that around 2,000 FMG doctors were facing problems in getting enrolled into an internship programme. In the case of Rajasthan alone, only around 30 percent of the total students, who cleared the mandatory FMGE test in January secured a seat for Internship. Earlier, Rajasthan Medical Council only held counselling for filling only 399 seats while the state almost had approximately 2,000 FMG internship seats. 966 of the 1,365 exam-qualified candidates were still waiting for an internship seat.

Also Read: Allow Internships at Non-Teaching Hospitals: FMGs Urge NMC

Last year, offering one-time relaxation to the FMGs who were facing difficulties to join the mandatory internship programme in India due to the limited number of seats in the medical colleges, NMC allowed them to get enrolled at the non-teaching hospitals for this purpose.

Stipend for FMG Interns: 

The FMG representatives also raised the issue of stipend for FMG interns before the NMC officials. Recently, while considering the issue of non-payment of stipend to the Foreign Medical Graduates (FMGs) interns, the Supreme Court also said that the FMGs cannot be treated differently and should be paid stipends during their internship like their counterparts who have done MBBS from the Indian medical colleges.

However, Dr. Sarvesh Pandey said, "Despite the Supreme Court order and NMC guidelines, the FMGs do not get stipend during their internship. Several Government medical colleges ask the medical graduates from abroad to submit affidavit stating that they do not require stipend during the internship period and FMGs only get internship at such colleges under this condition. The representatives have requested the NMC to take steps so that the students are not pressurised to submit such affidavits for getting enrolled to the internship programme. They have also requested the authorities to give them stipend during the internship period."

Also Read: Supreme Court relief: FMGs to now get stipend during internship as Indian MBBS interns

Opposition against 3-year Internship Rule: 

Another issue that the FMG representatives discussed with the NMC officials was the 3-year internship rule. Last year on 22.11.2023, addressing several issues concerning the FMGs, NMC had mentioned that medical students abroad, who had a break in their Final year and who returned to India due to the COVID pandemic or war and completed their course online such students "be allowed to continue to complete their two years before permanent registration given by the State Medical Council."

NMC had also addressed the issues of FMGs who had a break in their Penultimate year of study and mentioned that "Existing FMGs, if any, already performing internship at present, may be allowed to continue with one year of internship. They may subsequently do one year clinical clerkship and one year internship. (Thus a total of three (3) years, before obtaining Permanent Registration from concerned SMC)."

Again on December 07, 2023, NMC released another Public Notice addressing such FMGs who returned to India in their Penultimate year, it mentioned, "Existing FMGs undergoing internship be allowed to continue to complete their three (3) years before permanent registration given by the State Medical Council."

However, the medical graduates from abroad have been protesting against this extended period of internship arguing that these additional years of training is resulting in delays in achieving their academic goals and also creating financial burdens on their families.

"Why do the students need to undergo an internship for three years? We have requested the officials to remove this rule at the earliest," Dr. Pandey told Medical Dialogues.

Also Read: Reconsider 3-year Internship Rule for FMGs: Doctors Urge Health Minister, NMC