India’s apex medical education regulator introduces a new module to better prepare doctors for challenges posed by pandemics like COVID-19. Medical students have to now learn about pandemic management along with its social, legal, and other aspects in the MBBS course.
The board of governors (BoG) in supersession of the Medical Council of India(MCL) (1) said that this module is extending from the foundation course to the final year undergraduate program. It ensures the creation of an Indian medical graduate for serving in bleak times like a pandemic. It is for the MBBS students to acquire competencies in handling the illness and other issues arising from pandemic disease outbreaks.
Dr. V K Paul, Chairman, BoG, said the emergence and rapid spread of COVID-19 had underlined the need to develop these skills among the graduates.
More on Content of the Module
The Medical Council of India has modified the regulations on Graduate Medical Education and Competency-based undergraduate curricula. It also is accompanied by detailed guidance for its implementation.
The foreword stated that this education program desires to enable the Indian medical graduate to be ready for the unknown. They should understand, investigate, treat, and prevent new and emerging diseases as a clinician, community leader, and scholar.
The document stated that the module is arranged in a phase-based manner. And an interdisciplinary team under supervision by the college level Curriculum Committee will be covering it.
The module includes the history of outbreaks, epidemics and pandemics, infection control practices, sample collection, microbial diagnosis, serologic tests, and performance parameters. It also has therapeutic strategies, including new drug development and care of patients during a pandemic. Vaccination strategies, including vaccine development and implementation, among others, are in the program.
A team of experts and MCI’ academic cell has put together the document containing the module’s details. The colleges need to adopt the same.
