Ministry of Health and Family Welfare publishes ‘Reform, Perform and Transform’- Governance Reforms in Medical Education (2014-2022).

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govt. of India, has published an analysis of its Governance Reforms in Medical Education (2014-2022). The Booklet is titled ‘Reform, Perform and Transform’.

The booklet recognises that Health workforce is the most critical asset for health systems worldwide and in the post-pandemic era, is increasingly being recognized as a priority pillar to ensure equitable health coverage, locally, nationally and globally.

The analysis states that besides the increase in the number of medical colleges, a number of regulatory reforms were undertaken in Inida to streamline the number of UG and PG seats. More than 50 crucial long-pending regulatory reforms were brought in the last seven years.

Key Regulatory reforms are as follws:

 • Norms for setting up Medical College relaxed

• Consortium allowed to establish Medical College

• Permission for a lesser number of seats if criteria for   a higher number of seats are not met

• Teacher: Student ratio norms relaxed in PG Regulation

• Equivalence of DNB with PG as faculty

• Mandatory to start PG in 3 years from MBBS recogniton

• Permission to apply for PG earlier-at the time of    2nd renewal

• ICU beds to be counted as general beds

• Starting Super-specialty Department directly within    the broad speciality

The booklet goes on to state that the key area in which reforms will continue is the quality of education. The National Medical Commission (NMC) will ensure the effective implementation of a competence-based curriculum in all medical colleges, along with a focus on skill-based teaching.

Incentives for the retention of faculty in peripheral and backward areas will be worked out. The participation of medical colleges in national health programmes will be enhanced by enriching their implementation.

The reforms for the promotion of meritocracy and affordability of quality medical education will be strengthened by:

1. Improving the quality of education and educational    institutions to bring them at par with global standards
2. Ensuring stringent licensing examination
3. Enabling better deployment mechanisms and employment   opportunities
4. Developing a robust information system to enable   evidence-based policy decisions
5. Ensuring streamlined collaborative efforts by key stakeholders