The National Medical Commission (NMC) is finalizing a policy that will allow Foreign Medical Graduates (FMGs) to undergo a six-month medical practical skill examination. This initiative aims to evaluate the clinical skills of FMGs through a practical examination. Once passed, the NMC will waive off the remaining internship tenure of their Compulsory Rotatory Medical Internship (CRMI), according to an official source.
This proposed policy offers a middle ground for FMGs who were disappointed by the NMC’s circular on June 7, 2024, which suggested increasing the existing internship tenure by 12 months. “The NMC has a responsibility to uphold the interests of both patients and medical professionals. Concerned about the lack of practical exposure among FMGs, the NMC initially proposed a two- to three-year internship. However, FMGs face challenges at the grassroots level, including issues with internship seats and stipends. To address these challenges, a six-month practical examination was suggested, though it remains a proposal and not an official policy,” says the source.
NMC validated the list of recognised non-teaching hospitals for CRMI for a period of two years from May 2024 to May 2026. Dr Kaushal, the media coordinator of the All FMGs Association (AFA), says, “Because NMC has extended the validity of internships up to two years, the state medical councils are purposely delaying counselling as they are not interested in providing FMGs stipends. This delay will further cause the loss of time for those who have planned to appear for the NEET PG exam next year.” As per the eligibility criteria of NEET PG, candidates must complete their internship on or before a specific date. Due to the delay in internship seat allotment, FMGs will waste another year before they could apply for the NEET PG exam, says a Tamil Nadu FMG, member, AFA. “I finished my MBBS from Kyrgyzstan in 2023 and cleared the FMGE January 2024 session. I have been waiting since February as the seat allotment process in Tamil Nadu is very different from other states.
Everywhere else, medical councils verify documents after FMGs have already initiated their internships. While in Tamil Nadu, the verification process has three major steps which take around 3-4 months.” There are around 600 students who have been waiting to start their internship in Tamil Nadu; some have moved out to Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, and other states after getting frustrated with the system here, Tamil Nadu FMG adds.
Extension of internship The Undergraduate Medical Education Board (UGMEB) under the NMC released a circular asking the FMGs to continue their internship for another year. The circular stated that FMGs are obtaining the compensatory certificates “maliciously”. The FMGs on June 10, 2024, gathered outside the NMC office calling the circular ‘unfair’ and urging them to revoke the circular. However, NMC believes that by increasing the tenure of the internship, FMGs will be trained to become better medical professionals. “It has come to the notice of the NMC that FMGs have been escaping the supplementary clinical training or are obtaining the compensatory certificates without completing the training. It was also noticed that several State Medical Councils (SMCs) are letting go of the inclusion of compensatory certificates and have been assigning FMGs, to begin with their CRMI. To keep a check on the quality of medical training, NMC has decided to increase the existing tenure of the internship by another year,” says Dr Aruna V Vanikar, president, UGMEB.
Courtesy Education Times
