Private Clinic at RIMS affecting its PG course in Biochemistry

Ranchi: The private diagnostic clinic running under a public private partnership(PPP) at the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (Rims) is reported to be affecting the post-graduate biochemistry student’s academic curriculum. The Medical Council of India has inferred that the hospital’s bio chemistry department does not have ‘adequate investigative workload,’ and therefore, has overruled the RIMS application for PG Biochemistry seat increase from 3 to 5.

Objections have been raised by the MCI’s Post Graduate Education Committee, to "certain biochemical investigations that have been outsourced on PPP mode," after a recent inspection of the Hospital by the Committee.

The inspection report submitted by the MCI to the RIMS Management, stated that outsourcing of biochemical investigations was reducing the investigative workload of the hospital laboratories.

The investigative workload which gets converted to case studies or practical classes is mandatory for PG students as per academic curriculum.

The private clinic operational under the Raghubar Das government's 2015 move is meant to provide good quality pathological and radiological services, under PPP mode.The diagnostic chain in the name of Medall, has been operational for over an year.

RIMS Director, Dr. BK Sherwal when contacted about outsourcing said that the observations made about it were that of individual inspectors. "Our investigative burden is more than adequate. In fact, the MCI guidelines do not clearly define the exact number of investigation required for curriculum," he added. "However, we are sending a compliance report to the MCI within a few days," the Director added.

According to RIMS sources, a two member inspection team visited the biochemistry department thrice in 2016 and took stock of the diagnostic services at the private laboratory.

The brunt of the regulator’s visit was borne by the hospital, as it expressed its dissatisfaction over the lack of faculty members in the department and the absence of state of the art equipment.

Earlier in 2015, the private laboratory had come in for criticism for wrongly diagnosing a patient as HIV positive.