All MBBS doctors should do compulsory 3-year rural service, violation should lead to deregistration, ban on medical practice: Parliamentary Committee

The rural parts of the country are grappling with an awful shortage of doctors and the government has taken several measures to overcome it over the last few years. One such move includes a compulsory rural service, however, most of the doctors prefer staying in cities because the villages lack facilities such as good accommodation, schooling for kids and other recreational activities. Hence, there is a tendency among the medical professionals doing MBBS and PG from government medical colleges to switch to private practice on completion of the course for higher earnings through practice in cities.

Now, with a renewed focus on rural health care, these recent recommendations given by the parliamentary committee are aimed at improving the healthcare sector throughout the country including segments of medical education, academia, health facilities and other health policies to address the existing challenges in rural areas.

The Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health and Family Welfare, headed by Prof. Ram Gopal Yadav, has submitted its 126th report on Demands for Grants 2021-22 on 08.03.2021.

The committee in its report principally noted the problem of adequate human resources at the rural health and wellness centres. It observed that the common masses feel impoverished, neglected and marginalised as there are no takers for their illness as doctors are averse to their posting in rural areas.

Thus, the committee has now recommended the Department of Health and Family Welfare for the compulsory posting of doctors passing MBBS in the rural areas for three years and practitioners violating the rule may be de-registered and prohibited from undergoing medical practices for the de-registered period.

Further, the Committee also suggested that all basic facilities must be provided to the doctors posted in rural areas viz. marketing centres, quality educational institutions and recreational avenues.

Earlier, a Group of Ministers (GoM) on Health had suggested a complete revamp of the medical education system, calling for a series of measures including compulsory rural posting before completion of MBBS.

Read Also: Group of Ministers on Health call for shorter MBBS duration, Integration with PG medical courses: Report

Moreover, the Committee, given the lack of sufficient public fund, underlined the need to give impetus to the Public-Private Partnership Model for laying of long-term healthcare infrastructure. The Committee, in this connection, recommended the department for exploring the setting up of Medi-City on Public-Private Partnership Model suburbs adjacent to the big cities, for example, adjacent to Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, Patna, Gwalior or other such select cities, so that liveability quotient of that area can be enhanced.

The Parliamentary Committee felt that the provision of Medi-City would some extent overcome the problem of deployment of specialist doctors in the rural areas as the suburbs area would facilitate the doctors to get attracted to the Medi-City. "The provision for Medi-City on the PPP Model can save the golden hour," it opined.

According to Annual Report 2020-21 the Department of Health and Family Welfare, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare is implementing various schemes, programmes and national initiative to provide universal access to quality healthcare. The National Health Mission (NHM), a flagship health systems reform programme, under the department provides a robust platform for the implantation of a range of interventions focused on primary and secondary healthcare in rural and urban areas.