New NMC Guidelines and their effects on MBBS Abroad

Every year that goes by, the trend among students to study MBBS Abroad rises to unprecedented heights. An increasing number of students are venturing to new places in pursuit of their dream of becoming prosperous doctors. As a result, in addition to the usual top choices, such as the USA, Australia, Canada, and the UK, the new wave of medical students is choosing Georgia for MBBS, Bangladesh, Guyana, Barbados, and Russia.  

The inexpensive possibilities are among the main factors influencing these students' decisions to study in these nations. Qualifying for the NEET becomes a requirement in 2019 for these students to study MBBS abroad. This significantly reduced the number of overseas students. Therefore, the only people who can choose to study MBBS overseas are committed medical students with a qualifying NEET.

Following the release of the NMC new guidelines in 2023 in the Indian Gazette, With effect from June 2, 2023, the Graduate Medical Education Board (UGMEB) has issued new guidelines for the MBBS course, superseding the Graduate Medical Education Regulations 1997 (as amended).

(i) CBME Curriculum

(ii) Manpower Requirement for Research Facilities in a Medical College.

(iii) Family Adoption Program

(iv) Admission of students under the "Disability Category" in MBBS Course.

(v) Format for submission of information regarding admission to a medical college

The main goal of the new laws is to further advance medical education by making it more environment-appropriate, gender-sensitive, outcome-oriented, learner-centric, and patient-centric. The ultimate product is a curriculum driven by outcomes that complies with international standards. While acknowledging the benefits and importance of subject-based education and assessment, there is a focus on the alignment and integration of subjects in both horizontal and vertical directions. Due to this, "broad competencies" have had to be departed from; end-of-phase subject (sub) competencies have been written in the reports instead. It is possible to link these "sub-competencies" to the Graduate Medical Education Regulations' global competencies.

Through the provision of dedicated curricular time in the form of a longitudinal program based on Attitude, Ethics, and Communication (AETCOM) competencies, the significance of ethical ideals, responsiveness to the patient's requirements, and acquisition of communication skills are highlighted. Collaborative and multidisciplinary teamwork, professionalism, generosity, and respect in professional interactions with appropriate awareness of variations in opinion, social and economic position, and gender have all received a lot of attention. Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate Regulations 2023.

Several stakeholders strongly objected to NMC's draft notification that proposed a significant change for Foreign Medical Graduates (FMGs), which was announced in April 2021. On November 18, 2021, NMC released the Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate (FMGL) Regulations after taking note of all these worries.

The rules assured that foreign medical graduates who want to study for an MBBS abroad can operate in India once they have obtained permanent registrations following their successful completion of the Indian medical licensing test and accompanying procedures.

The FMGs must meet the following requirements to be qualified to apply for permanent registrations:

The MBBS program at the selected foreign university should take a minimum of 54 months to complete, including a minimum 12-month internship in the same medical facilities and NMC medical college recognition is very important.

English should have been the official language of instruction for the pupils when they were in the university. Community medicine, general medicine, psychiatry, pediatrics, general surgery, anesthesia, obstetrics and gynecology, orthopedics, otorhinolaryngology, ophthalmology, dermatology, emergency or casualty services, lab services, and their subspecialties must have been studied by the students.

To obtain a provisional or permanent registration with the National Medical Commission or any State Medical Council on or after March 15, 2002, an individual who is an Indian citizen or who has been granted Overseas Citizenship of India and who has been awarded a primary medical qualification by any medical institution outside of India must pass a screening test administered by the designated authority.

Eligibility Criteria: No person shall be allowed to appear in the screening test unless:

(1) He or she is an Indian citizen or has been given Indian Overseas Citizenship, and possesses any main medical qualification that is accepted as a prerequisite for becoming a licensed medical practitioner in the nation where the institution that grants the qualification is located.

(2) Following the "Eligibility Requirement for taking admission in an undergraduate medical course in a Foreign Medical Institution Regulations, 2002," he or she had earned an "Eligibility Certificate" from the National Medical Commission (or the former Medical Council of India). For Indian nationals or Indian nationals living abroad who have received medical training from foreign medical schools or who were admitted to a foreign medical school before March 15, 2002, this criteria will not apply.

On or after May 2018, Indian citizens and citizens of other countries who plan to pursue primary medical education at any medical facility outside of India must meet the requirements of the "National Eligibility-cum- Entrance Test for Admission to MBBS course." As long as the candidates meet the requirements outlined in the Graduate Medical Education Regulations of 1997 for eligibility to the MBBS program, their performance on the "National Eligibility-cum-Entrance (NEET Exam) for Admission to MBBS course" will be regarded as their eligibility certificate.