JIPMER to upgrade UG, PG curriculum

JIPMER Puducherry, an institute of importance established by an Act of Parliament, with a mandate to generate trained manpower in various fields of health sciences through traditional and innovative approaches, which is empowered to develop new teaching/training curricula and start new undergraduate and post-graduate programmes to achieve this goal, in the process of upgrading and revising its undergraduate and postgraduate curriculum.

According to a JIPMER statement, the recently-held UG and PG board of studies appreciated the innovation in the curriculum reforms asn 'First of a Kind in India'.

The most important innovative feature, is sensitising and exposing the undergraduate(MBBS) students to various ICMR research labs of the country which will give an idea/knowledge of how and what researches are going on in India most of the UG's and PG's are in dark regarding the excellent research ICMR labs of India.

In this regard, the approval of the director general ICMR has been obtained for the visit of the undergraduate, postgraduate and postdoctoral students to various regional ICMR research labs to undertake their research work/observership.

It has been proposed to post the second and third year MBBS students to the ICMR laboratories or any other reputed Government National/International laboratories or hospitals of their choice during their vacations.

The posting will be for a minimum period of two weeks in one single spell or two spells of not less than one week each. This will help develop research aptitude among undergraduates and standard of research in Health Sciences, it added. Secondly, as part of service to the community and provide help and guidance to the patients and their attendants, 'JIPMER Help Group' was created in 2016, which has been running with the help of student volunteers. Such programmes, called as 'service learning/transformative learning,' are already being practiced in many parts of the world.

It is now proposed to involve all streams of undergraduates (MBBS, Nursing and paramedical courses) in this endeavour. A short stint of social work by the undergraduates will, not only benefit the patients but will also be a good training exercise for the students in soft skills to hone their communication and develop empathy.

Transforming MBBS students as best health care counselors is the aim of this innovation. Thirdly, a system-based curriculum with vertical and horizontal integration of MBBS subjects to ensure early and adequate clinical exposure to the MBBS students.

This measure will significantly improve the knowledge and skills of an MBBS doctor resulting in improved the primary care services provided by them. All these reforms had been approved by Board of studies and will be implemented next academic year onwards in full swing.