Change rules for hiring mid-level healthcare providers: Harish to Centre

HYDERABAD: Health Minister T Harish Rao on Tuesday requested the Union Health Ministry to consider amending the guidelines and permit recruitment of candidates having Bachelor of Unani Medicine and Surgery, Bachelor of Naturopathy and Yogic Science and Bachelor of Homoeopathic Medicine and Surgery qualifications as mid-level healthcare providers.

As per Ayushman Bharat guidelines, health and wellness centres can recruit only those having B.Sc in Community Health or a nurse with general nursing and midwifery course or an Ayurvedic practitioner for the post. In his letter to Union Health Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya, Harish stated that as per the regulations of National Commission for Indian System of Medicines and National Commission for Homoeopathy, BAMS, BUMS, BNYS and BHMS are medicine graduation courses of similar nature. However, the present guidelines restrict their recruitment ‘denying opportunities to a large number of equally qualified medical graduates of other systems of Indian Medicine and Homoeopathy’. In this regard, Harish requested the Union Health Minister to amend the guidelines.