Parliamentary Committee calls for setting up Separate Indian Medical Services Cadre

Keeping in mind the incredible role of Corona warriors during combating the vicissitude of coronavirus, the Committee in its a report released recently opined that the present moment holds the golden opportunity to explore the possibility of organizing Indian medical services in order to create specialized task force for implementation of the flagship program relating to health.

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

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Giving more information regarding the formation of the Indian Medical Services across the country, the Committee report added, "The committee recommends for the creation of an All India Medical Services on the lines of All India Civil Services such as IAS, IPS, and IFS. The Committee feels that Indian Medical Services would provide efficient healthcare managers to enhance the success rate of healthcare projects and make policy programme and specific course of action for fighting against lethal disease."

Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that the Resident Doctors Association (RDA) at the premier All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) had demanded the setting up of Indian Medical Services (IMS), which it had called as a "much-voiced need" for doctors across the country. The association cited that this initiative would be able to bridge the gap between decision and deliverance.

The same demand was later raised by the Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA), a body of resident doctors in Delhi. It said the coronavirus pandemic had once again stressed the need for improving the healthcare infrastructure in the nation beginning from the grassroots.

Later, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) had demanded the setting up of an Indian Medical Service (IMS), on the lines of IAS, IPS and IFS, to bring about a drastic change in the healthcare sector.

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"The IMS will be responsible for holding the administrative responsibilities pertaining to the district medical officer, project officers of various disease control programs, and the various ranks of secretaries in the Union health ministry and the state health departments and the heads all other areas in the health sector", Dr. Rajan Sharma, IMA national president had said mentioning that the basic qualification to sit for the examination should be MBBS.

Now, the Parliamentary report regarding the formation of IMS has expressed its views in consonance with that of FORDA and IMA.

The recommendation by the Committee comes after it observed the lack of coordination and collaboration between public healthcare managers and people's representative on the modus operandi of public healthcare institutions. The committee in its report has further mentioned that it understands that the delivery of healthcare facilities at the ground level "lack the vigour and agility on the part of the healthcare managers and the people's representative faced the consequences due to the leader and follower continuum in a democratic country. People's representative being the vehicle of people's expectation has to face the outcry of the public in view of the inadequacy of readily available healthcare facilities."

The committee, therefore, has strongly recommended, "for better coordination and information sharing mechanism having linkage at the district, state and national level amongst the policymakers and implementing authorities of cherished healthcare programmes with the people's representative and all other stakeholders to ensure cent per cent successful implementation of the flagship health programme."