Medical College denied PG course recognition by MCI admitting students

Kochi: Government Medical College, Ernakulam, has admitted students in all the five streams of Post Graduate specialization on the basis of the State's letter of undertaking to the Union Health Ministry towards improving infrastructure, addressing faculty shortage and the opening of super specialty departments. The college has lost its Postgraduate course recognition due to lack of infrastructure, and the paucity of faculty in all the 5 postgraduate streams.

The medical college's postgraduate courses with a total of 11 seats have three seats in general medicine and two each in pathology paediatrics, psychiatry, and microbiology.

The loss of recognition came as the college was unable to meet with Council compliance.

With the coming on of new admissions despite the loss of recognition, the college will be sending its students to other medical colleges for their clinical studies in the super-specialty courses. Last month a full-time professor in cardiology was appointed in the medical college. A professor in nephrology was also been taken on recently.

Doctors working in the college are hopeful that more appointments will ensue now. According to the medical college authorities, it is the government decision to admit students. "When the Union Ministry grants recognition to the courses, it will be with retrospective effect," Principal Dr. V.K. Sreekala told the Hindu.

Director, Medical Education, Ramla Beevi, said that the government had been making efforts to overcome infrastructural and faculty lacunae in order to improve facilities and retain PG seats in all the State-run medical colleges. According to information, there are approximately 40-odd unrecognized PG seats across the State.

PG students passing out from unrecognized PG courses in state-run medical colleges would find it difficult to get employment abroad.