MBBS students: Postponement of exams has jeopardised our future

MBBS students: Postponement of exams has jeopardised our future

Rema.Nagarajan@timesgroup.com

11.05.2021

Lakhs of medical students are exasperated with the government wanting to postpone all exams citing surging Covid cases and then asking the same students to join for Covid ward duty. Going by the government’s logic, they point out, MBBS doctors will get infected if they appear for exams, but not if they work in Covid wards.

They pointed out that their careers have been put on hold and their training periods have been extended indefinitely citing Covid cases even as elections were held and religious gatherings were allowed. Resident doctors and medical students have been writing to all authorities concerned to express their unhappiness with the series of decisions made by the central government. None have responded.

There are about 60,000 post-graduate medical students, including roughly 15,000 Diplomate of National Board (DNB) students — mostly in private hospitals and 45,000 MD/MS students in medical colleges — who were ready to graduate and become specialists by this time. Instead, the government has announced the extension of their tenure till the next batch joins. No fresh batch can join till the entrance exams for post-graduation are conducted, which has been put off till after August 31.

When Union health minister Dr Harshvardhan tweeted on April 15 to announce the indefinite postponement of the post-graduate entrance exam just two days before it was to be held, he said “the decision has been taken keeping wellbeing of our young medical students in mind”. He added that “health & safety of our young doctors is paramount”.

“It takes about a month for results of the exam to be declared and another two months for counselling. So, we cannot expect a fresh batch of PG students to join till November-December. Resident doctors have been doing Covid duty for more than a year now and they are exhausted. Instead of getting a fresh batch to relieve them, the government has done this,” lamented a postgraduate student.

Over 1.7 lakh MBBS doctors have registered for the post-graduate entrance exam. “We had been allotted our exam centres and we had even downloaded our admit cards for the entrance when the government decided to cancel it. Most of us have been preparing for more than a year for the exam. We could have joined as residents in various hospitals if the tension of the entrance exam had got over,” said a doctor who had registered to appear for the entrance.

The PMO also wants finalyear MBBS students to be used to help in the Covid effort. Neither they nor thirdyear students have done much of clinical duties They are now expected to do Covid duty. “Hardly any of them have been vaccinated as they did not qualify as health workers since they were still studying. You are risking their lives by putting them on Covid duty,” said a PG student.

Going by the Centre’s logic, they said, MBBS doctors will get infected if they appear for exams, but not during Covid duty