NMC Withdraws new MBBS curriculum CBME 2024 Guidelines, revised framework soon
New Delhi: Amidst the allegations terming the new MBBS curriculum being 'queerphobic' and 'non-inclusive', the Undergraduate Medical Education Board (UGMEB) of the National Medical Commission (NMC) has "withdrawn and cancelled" the Competency-Based Medical Education Curriculum (CBME) Guidelines, 2024 with immediate effect.
Issuing a notice in this regard on 05.09.2024, the UG Board of the Apex Medical Commission further clarified that these guidelines would be revised and uploaded later.
"It is informed that the Circular of even number dated 31.08.2024 thereby issuing Guidelines under Competency Based Medical Education Curriculum (CBME) 2024, stands “WITHDRAWN AND CANCELLED” with immediate effect. The above guidelines will be revised and uploaded in due course," stated the notice issued by the Director of UGMEB Shambhu Sharan Kumar.
Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that NMC recently published the Competency-Based Medical Education (CBME) 2024 curriculum laying down the guidelines for the MBBS course.
However, these recently released guidelines were criticised by activists alleging that they violated the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act (RPDA) 2016 and the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act (TPA) 2019.
Two activists, who represent the disabled and transgender people, recently wrote to the Union Health Minister and NMC Chairperson pointing out how the newly released MBBS curriculum listed sodomy and lesbianism as "unnatural sexual offences" and also removed the Disability Competencies, which should have been longitudinally throughout the curriculum in AETCOM, from the guidelines. An RTI has also been filed in respect to the latter.
Under the Curriculum for Forensic Medicine, the CBME 2024 has listed "lesbianism" and "sodomy" as "unnatural sexual offences", which according to the activists is a violation of the TPA 2019. Further, it identified "transvestism" (cross-dressing) as a "sexual perversion".
Another issue that the activists have pointed out is that even though disability rights as mandatory disability competencies were introduced in the CBME 2019 guidelines, there is no mention of the same in the Foundation Course of the MBBS Curriculum, which has now been reduced to just two weeks.
Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that the Madras High Court in 2021 had highlighted the need to revamp the existing medical courses' curriculum and make them up to date. The bench had observed that medical courses in India reaffirm queerphobia and discrimination against the LGBTQIA + communities.
Back then, the Court had sought NMC to file a report as to how it would handle the issue in the future by carrying out necessary changes in the curriculum. Thereafter, in a similar order, the Kerala High Court directed the NMC to review the queerphobia text in MBBS course textbooks.
Later, NMC issued an advisory asking to make the textbooks LGBTQIA+ friendly and the Commission also removed the word "unnatural" from the classification of sexual activities including sodomy, buccal coitus, and lesbianism from the subject of Forensic Medicine & Toxicology of MBBS course.
Following this, an expert committee of NMC made suggestions to modify the CBME MBBS curriculum to make it LGBTQIA+ ( Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) Community-friendly.
to view the notice, click on the link below:
https://medicaldialogues.in/pdf_upload/public-notice-05092024-s240905200928-251280.pdf
