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Letter to Editor

RURAL INTERNSHIP TO MEDICAL GRADUATES: PROS

AND CONS
Binita Desai1, Naresh Godara2
1

Authors Affiliation: Assistant Professor, Associate Professor Dept of Community Medicine,

Govt. Medical College, Surat
Correspondence: Dr. Binita Desai, Email: drbinitadesai@yahoo.co.in
their study will also be
graduates after their
a
challenge.
The
post graduation will
Sir,
safety
issue
while
work better because
The Union Health Ministry is contemplating the posting
to
female
they can do work
introduction of compulsory rotational internshipstudents in rural area
independently as well
of two years for MBBS students, of which one
should also be taken
as there is no more
year will have to be served in a rural station of
care of. The choice of
burden
of
further
1
the students choice in any state. Currently,place and preference
studies
on
them.
MBBS students in country undergo four and half of students will also
Vacant
posts
of
years of study while one year of internship is
be troublesome as
specialists at various
charted out in teaching institution. The proposal
rural health centers
is to add another year of compulsory rural most of the students
can be filled up by
internship to the existing five and half years will prefer to serve
2
nearby rural areas of
freshly passed post
course.
After its implementation, the total
the
city.
In
that
case
graduates.
duration of the MBBS course would become sixand-a-half years in medical colleges in the will this compulsory
REFERENCES
country, after which the students would getrural posting serve the
of
permanent registration from the MCI. Till then,purpose
1. Available from
the degree would be provisional. One of the government! Students
URL: http://
recommendations of the taskforce of NRHM had have also to undergo
www.winentranc
been the introduction of an additional year of various
Post
e.com/news/co
compulsory rural internship as part of the MBBS graduates
entrance
1,3
mpulsory-ruralcourse. According to it, students will be examination in the
internshipattached with the Ministry's flagship National very next year, so the
mbbsRural Health Mission during the year-long rural rural internship will
students.html
posting which will also help improve health careinterfere with their
Date:03/06/201
services in villages. Students will be attached to preparation, while in
2
a rural hospital and a nearby medical college that case, will the
2. Available from
during this one year period. They will get a
URL:
stipend from the NRHM for their services duringstudents be able to do
justice
with
their
http://ibnlive.in.co
this period.
designated
duty
m/generalnewsfee
Once this proposal becomes part of MBBShours? Another issue
d/news/mciproposes-65yrcurriculum, a medical student, after completing is that students will
mbbs-course-with4.5 years of study and thereafter the hospital have only provisional
rural-posting-forinternship, will have to undergo a mandatory registration, so they
interns/960163.ht
year-long house job in the form of a rural posting cant share medico
ml
before getting the degree. Sources say legal duties of medical
Date:03/06/2012
government is working to do away with the officers. They have to
3. National Rural Health
compulsory three-month rural posting during the learn
under
the
Mission. Task Force
year-long MBBS internship and the same will be guidance
of
the
on Medical Education
officers,
made part of one-year rural house job with an medical
for National Rural
4
independent work will
Health Mission.
NRHM facility henceforth.
not
be
allotted
to
Ministry of Health
It is said that one-year mandatory rural posting
and Family Welfare,
them
for
most
of
the
will help aspiring doctors to learn from senior
GOI: New Delhi,
times.
This
will
not
doctors who act as mentors in the rural area.
India: p. 68 .
help
the
health
sector
Government's efforts to attract doctors for rural
Available from URL:
postings through various incentives earlier did much to decrease the
http://www.mohfw.nic
burden. Instead of it,
.in/NRHM/Documents
not yield any fruit.
one
more
regular
/Task_
One of the issues of concerns is long duration of Medical Officer will
Group_Medical_Educ
course and mandatory posting for students in serve better to the
ation.pdf Date:
03/06/2012
rural areas. With this giving placement at community and will
different rural areas to medical students who decrease the burden
4. Available from URL:
have just completed
of work of one Medical
http://articles.times
Officer.
Instead
of
ofindia.indiatimes.c
om/2012-05posting to graduates,
20/news/31788233
posting
of
post

_1_mbbs-students-rural-areas-mci-board

Date:03/06/2012
National Journal MedicineVolume 3Issue 4Oct
of Community Dec 2012
Page 759