Hyderabad: A mid-level course to equip and allow diagnosis of patients by non- MBBS medical professionals is stirring up a storm even though the Union health ministry states that they will be used only in primary and preventive health care.
But the Indian Medical Association (IMA) states that this will be another way to bring in non-qualified personnel into modern science. IMA claims that this approach by the government will be strongly protested and they are not going to accept it.
According to the Medical Council of India (MCI) there are 10.4 lakh doctors who are registered in various state branch councils. Of these 8.33 lakh doctors are in active service. The AYUSH sector has 7.63 lakh Ayurveda, Unani and Homeopathy doctors and of them 80 per cent are practising.
A total of all these shows that there will be one doctor for 1,596 people in India. Dr B Narsimha, member of IMA said, “If these numbers are taken into account then there are enough doctors for the people. Why is the government hell bent on getting non-MBBS cadre at the preventive and primary level.”
The bridge course which the government had proposed met with a stiff opposition by the IMA. But it also had AYUSH doctors protesting who wanted the Centre to introduce this course so that they could practice modern medicine.
