Subscribe
India’s young doctors have been protesting outside the Union home ministry in New Delhi for nearly a fortnight, while cases of the novel coronavirus diseases (COVID-19) are on the rise in the country due to omicron.
The already stressed healthcare system, buckling under the pressure of the pandemic, faces a threatening future.
Nearly 45,000-50,000 doctors who have completed MBBS are awaiting the post graduate National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET-PG) counselling. Only after the counselling process is complete can they take on the role of junior resident doctors in hospitals across India.
But due to a notice issued by the National Testing Agency (NTA) in July this year on reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBC) and Economically Weaker Section (EWS) — which has been challenged through several petitions pending in the Supreme Court — the process is in a limbo.
The NEET-PG is an annual exam for postgraduate courses in medical colleges, usually held in January followed by counselling of those who cleared it in March-April.
This year, it was delayed several times — first pushed from January to April and then to after August 31 due to the second wave of COVID-19. It eventually took place on 11 September, nearly nine months later.
Dr Sharon Fredrick, an MBBS doctor and NEET-PG aspirant, told Down To Earth:
Junior resident doctors essentially function as the frontline workers in wards, casualty departments and operation theatres. Their absence is straining a system that has been historically short of hands due to a huge patient load.
He also underlined that not only does this impact patient care, but also the physical health, mental health and academics of resident doctors. In the case of a severe third wave of COVID-19, this acute shortage will be heightened.
India’s healthcare system has always been stretched thin, but the 15th Finance Commission reported figures on this earlier this year, highlighting the extent of the shortage. One allopathic doctor in India caters to 1,511 people, far higher than the 1:1,000 ratio set by the World Health Organization, the report noted.
Currently, doctors in their third year are preparing for their exams, while the first year students have not been enrolled due to delayed counseling, according to Dr Harjit Singh Bhatti, an AIIMS alumni. “The strength is now down to a third, leaving just the second year students to handle the patient load in an already overworked system.”
The Indian Medical Association stressed on the same in a statement last week:
As the NEET-PG exam was not held in January 2021, the aggressive second wave was handled by limited manpower of doctors and resulted in the loss of more than 2,000 noble professional souls in the Covid war... At that time, 1,60,000 doctors were waiting for the examination to be held.
The protest took an ugly turn — doctors have alleged being roughed up by the police in the face of a crackdown. Their demands remain for a quick resolution of the issue, but the government has maintained that it cannot do much till the reservation matter is sub-judice.
EWS quota issue
One qualifies for being part of the EWS when they belong to the general category and have an annual family income below Rs 8 lakh. It is this monetary cap that raised concerns following which the legal route was taken by several petitioners.
In July 2021, the government stated the law will be implemented in the coming session (2021-2022), despite the matter being sub-judice.
“You must have some demographic or sociological or socio-economic data. You just cannot pull out Rs 8 lakh from thin air. The only thing you say is parity with OBC,” the apex court had said in a hearing on October 21, 2021.
On October 25, the Centre stated no counseling will take place till this is resolved and a month later, requested four weeks to revisit the EWS annual family income criteria. The next hearing will now take place on January 6, 2022.
“I understand that the EWS quota issue remains unresolved. But that is no reason to not hold counselling for the remaining students falling under the general category,” Dr Bhatti said.
Doctors’ demands
Counselling for this year’s batch is yet to be held, but the government has already announced dates for the next round of NEET-PG exam which will be held on March 12, 2022.
“They have announced a date for the next exam but there is still a backlog of the previous ones,” Rakesh Bagdi, advisor to the Federation of All India Medical Association and senior resident at Lady Hardinge Medical College said.
Those who were in the first year are waiting to go to second year but there is no fresh batch to replace them, he shared. “Their learning is also being hampered.”
Meanwhile, the Federation of Resident Doctors' Association put forth three demands an a press conference December 28. These include a promised date for counselling immediately after the SC hearing concludes on January 6, an apology from the authorities for mishandling by the police and a withdrawal of first information reports registered till now.
Many NEET-PG aspirants are already in precarious financial and mental situations. “The delay, caused partly due to COVID-19 and majorly due to the incompetence of the government in drafting laws, and in their inability to take all stakeholders into confidence before implementing anything, has put many of the aspirants between a rock and a hard place,” Dr Fredrick said.
Many come from poor and middle income families, and going for so long without an admission and a stipend can break many backs, he added.
Prior to this, the body met with Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, who urged them to call off the strike. However, nothing conclusive emerged from the meeting.
Several doctors’ bodies have threatened mass resignations and complete shutdowns as protests erupted across the country.