Doon Medical college gears up for MCI visit, cancels leaves

In view of upcoming visit of the team of Medical Council of India (MCI) for the all important third letter of permission (LOP), the administration of Government Doon Medical College (GDMC) here has imposed a ban on leaves of the doctors till end of this month. The team of the MCI is expected to visit the medical college and associated hospital in next few days.

The anxiety of the college administration for the visit of the MCI team is understandable as college has many grey areas to resurrect before the arrival of the team. The authorities don’t want a situation when the LOP for admission for the second batch was granted after three inspections. The Principal of the GDMC, Dr Pradip Bharati Gupta confirmed that the doctors have been asked not to take leaves till April 30.

The MCI team in its last visit had objected to the vacant faculty positions similarly the number of resident doctors was also found less than required.

The team also found that the departments like Microbiology, pharmacology, pathology and forensic medicines are almost non functional. Similarly the distance between two beds in the hospital wards found to be less than the standard specification. The MCI team had pointed about paucity of medical journals in the college library and absence of separate section for minor eye surgery.

The GDMC was awarded Letter of Permission (LOP) by the MCI on June 2016 and based on this permission; the college admitted 150 students in its first batch of MBBS course last year. The college was given second LOP by the apex body of medical education in April last year based on which 150 students were admitted in the 2nd  batch.  The third batch of the MBBS students would be admitted in the college in the months of July – August from the NEET merit for which the third LOP to the college is necessary.

These LOPs was provided to the college by the Ministry of Health and family welfare, Government of India  on the condition that the college would have to continuously upgrade its facilities and invite the MCI team for renewal of permission in coming years. The college would have to continuously upgrade the facilities in the associated hospital and medical college for these renewals. The GDMC would have to eventually upgrade itself from the present 300 bed associated hospital to 750 bed one.