While the Indian Medical Association (IMA) has demanded that only medical postgraduates be appointed as teachers in medical colleges, the M.Sc. Medicine Association (India) has appealed to the Health Ministry, stating that M.Sc. holders have been denied their right to teach by creating a “false narrative”.
“The narrative states that we are non-medical teachers with non-medical postgraduate qualification, and hence are incompetent to hold the teaching positions; whereas, the fact is, we are ‘recognised medical postgraduates’ as in IMC Act 1956 and NMC Act 2019,” said the group.
Postgraduates in pre- and para-clinical subjects such as anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, microbiology and pharmacology have been working as medical teachers in various medical institutions and the associated healthcare setup in the country. Previously, the Medical Council of India allowed appointment of M.Sc. holders to the extent of 30% of the total faculty in anatomy, physiology, pharmacology and microbiology, and up to 50% in biochemistry. Now the National Medical Council (NMC) has reduced their proportion to up to 15% in anatomy, physiology and biochemistry.
“M.Sc. holders have been working alongside medical postgraduates with MD/ MS/ DNB qualifications in pre- and para-clinical departments for almost six decades. We, as medical teachers, have been contributing to the medical education and health significantly,” said the letter.