Change in policy for Healthcare and Medical Institutions: Azad

Ghulam Nabi Azad 300x229 Change in policy for Healthcare and Medical Institutions: AzadAs per statement revealed by Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, the Centre is now considering to facilitate overseas citizens of India with foreign medical qualifications to both practice and teach in the country due to shortage of skilled manpower in the Indian healthcare system.

The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas has been organized at the Birla Auditorium, Jaipur where all the overseas Indians and people of Indian origin are addressing and Azad announced that the government has undertaken policy reforms to encourage capacity building in medical institutions.

These policy reforms include rationalization of land use for setting up medical institutions, placing FDI in healthcare under automatic approval route, and increasing the faculty student ratio in PG Medical Colleges from 1:2 to 1:1.

Today the main problem in the medical field is that of excess amount upto five lakh qualified practitioners in the Indian system of medicine and shortage of about seven lakh doctors in the allopathy stream.

Addressing overseas citizens that can now intimate with foreign medical qualifications to both practice and teach in India while they have get recognition of post-graduate medical degrees of five English speaking countries (UK, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand) for teaching as visiting faculty in India, Azad said, “Let me assure you that we are prepared to go an extra mile to adequately liberalize policies and set up a single window within the ministry of health and family welfare to ease the process of your meaningful participation.”

However around three lakh doctors of Indian origin working abroad out of which 40,000 work in the national health system of the United Kingdom alone, forming the core of its service delivery.

Highlighted the situation over less number of PG students and infrastructural issue, Azad informed, “To facilitate establishment of more medical colleges, both by the government and the private sector, requirements of land and ancillary infrastructure were drastically rationalized, student teacher ratio for PG students has been increased as a result of which 46 new medical colleges, 8,577 MBBS seats and 8,181 PG seats have been added in just two years time.”

Morever Minister has also defined sufficient amount of finance for medical services. There is no fund crisis with govt over services. The 12th Five Year Plan that is being launched in 2012 brings health to the centre stage. The govt. will increase expenditure on healthcare to 2.5 % of our Gross Domestic Product from the current level of 1%.

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