A majority of medical students said that medical colleges lacked infrastructure, did not get sufficient time for hands-on clinical training during their academic journey and that medical colleges lacked systems that supported research, innovation and interdisciplinary medical advancements.
Asked whether medical colleges and affiliated hospitals have a strong system in place to support research, innovation and interdisciplinary medical advancements, over 70% students responded with a “no”. Similarly, over 68% students said that they lacked hands-on experience during their academic journey either owing to exam pressure or lack of adequate opportunities. Students enrolled in government medical colleges expressed concerns over lack of exposure to an array of patients owing to rampant referrals to private or government super speciality hospitals.
The event saw experts including Dr BS Ajaikumar (Executive Chairman, HCG Enterprises), Dr K.B. Linge Gowda (Vice-Chancellor, SSAHE), and Dr. Naveen Thimmaiah (Director, Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology).
Dr H S Nagesh, former director, RV Dental College said, “Although there was a change of nomenclature from Medical Council of India to National Medical Commission, no change has happened in a true sense. The body has retained its rigidity and has seen no visible shift in attitude. NMC must work towards making medical education more flexible, allow universities to work with autonomy with respect to syllabus and curriculum changes and accept new ideas. The Government of India must address this as a priority.” He also said that rather than having vast expanses of land gto start medical varsities, funds must be put into boosting infrastructure within the campus, boosting industry collaboration and addressing teacher shortage.
Karnataka is proposing to set up new medical colleges under a PPP Model. Dr Naveen said, “There is a shortage of teachers in medical colleges in the farther districts of Karnataka. Tier two cities have their own set of challenges as practicing doctors might be unwilling to relocate here to work in medical colleges.” Emphasising on the need for practical exposure, he sought to know that although MBBS students studied cancer in their curriculum, how many students had seen a linear accelerator or witnessed a chemotherapy session.
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