Rural MBBS course discriminatory, says NHRC - New Indian Express 30.01.2010

by U Anand Kumar, New Delhi

TAKING strong exception to the Union Health Ministry's proposal for a rural MBBS course to provide treatment in far-flung areas, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Friday termed it discriminatory.

At a day-long meeting of State Health secretaries, NHRC member PC Sharma said people in rural areas were entitled to treatment from fully-qualified doctors just as in urban areas.

Referring to a suggestion of having three and half years of short-term training for deployment in rural areas, Sharma said, "This step would be discriminatory to both the people who get treatment from such half-baked professionals and also to medical students who take eight to ten years to become a specialist."

In a bid to combat acute shortage of doctors in rural areas, the gover nment proposed a unique three-and-ahalf-year bachelor course for students from villages. Once the rural doctors get their degrees, they will be allowed to practice only in notified rural areas. NHRC acting chairperson Justice Mathur said that in the absence of recognised medical practitioners, rural and tribal population were dependent on unqualified doctors.

Justice Mathur said that one of the big challenges facing quality medical care was untrained and unqualified people or quacks practicing medicine even in a city like Delhi.