It has been recommended that doctors undergoing internships during MBBS and BDS studies be given a monthly subsistence allowance of at least Rs 24,000. The task force, coordinated by Chandrakant Bhusal, Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Education, has suggested that intern (trainee) doctors be given a subsistence allowance of 50 percent of the starting salary scale of the eighth level of health services. The salary of the eighth level is Rs 48,500.

The task force formed to give its opinion on the monthly subsistence allowance of MBBS and BDS intern doctors at the undergraduate level in medical education had also suggested the government to make uniform arrangements for allowances in government and private medical colleges. Intern doctors had been raising the agenda of uniformity as the subsistence allowances differed between government and private medical colleges. According to them, private medical colleges were providing subsistence allowances of up to 13 thousand and government medical colleges were providing subsistence allowances of up to 23 thousand.

In 2081, there was also a dispute over the subsistence allowance of resident doctors studying at the postgraduate level (MD). The government had decided that all medical colleges should provide a monthly subsistence allowance of 48 and a half thousand to resident doctors. The decision is being implemented through the Medical Education Commission. The Ministry of Education has stated that it will send the decision to the commission to implement the decision in the case of intern doctors as well.

Coordinator Bhusal said that the task force has given its opinion that it would be appropriate to give 50 percent of the subsistence allowance given to resident doctors to intern doctors. The task force has pointed out that it would be appropriate to implement the same arrangement for students studying in other medical education programs that have a one-year internship program. ‘The study/teaching of the undergraduate level of medical education MBBS and BDS programs is an integral part of the curriculum, including involvement in health services, in line with the concept of bedside teaching learning,’ the report says. ‘It is fair to fulfill the minimum needs of students involved in internships, including accommodation, food, transportation and other essential facilities, taking into account the mandatory period of time spent by students in the hospital, the level of difficulty of work, night service and additional workload.’ The task force has also suggested that the government implement/get it implemented by the Commission, as the Commission has the jurisdiction to implement the suggestion.

About 2,500 students are admitted to MBBS and BDS every year. There is a provision in the curriculum to work as a compulsory intern for the last one year. An agreement was also reached between the government and the Sangharsh Samiti for Safe Workplaces for Health Workers to provide minimum subsistence allowance to intern doctors at the same level as the government. To implement the agreement, a committee formed under the coordination of the then Additional Secretary of the Ministry of Health, Tanka Prasad Barakoti, had also recommended providing 50 percent subsistence allowance of the eighth level to intern doctors.

Dilli Harijan, a student studying MBBS at Kathmandu University, said that the government should implement the recommendation of the task force. He said that the attention of Prime Minister Balendra Shah, Education Minister Sasmit Pokharel, Health Minister Nisha Meheta and the acting vice-chairman of the commission, Shree Krishna Giri, has been drawn to the implementation of the recommendation. ‘We have found the government to be positive in providing subsistence allowance to intern doctors on par with the government,’ he said, ‘It should be implemented through the commission from this year.’ A campaign was launched to provide equal internships to MBBS and BDS students. Under pressure from the campaign, the government formed a task force and took the process forward. The Bhusal task force included representatives from the Medical Education Commission, the Health Sciences Academy and the Medical College.

000

Do not put resident doctors to work continuously

The Nepal Medical Council has alerted teaching hospitals and health sciences institutes across the country not to put resident doctors at the MD, MS, and MDS levels to work continuously.

The council has stated that it has received complaints and grievances that some institutions and hospitals have deployed resident doctors on duty for 24 to 36 hours continuously. The attention of health institutions has been drawn to take care of their duty hours and mental health. ‘The council has received complaints that resident doctors are being assigned to duty for more than 24 to 36 hours continuously, which is causing them to suffer from severe physical fatigue, mental stress, depression and extreme despair,’ the directive issued by Acting Registrar Dr. Dipendra Pandey said. ‘According to the ‘PG Medical Education Regulation-2017’ approved by the Government of Nepal (Health Ministerial level), residents can generally be assigned to duty for a maximum of 24 hours only twice a week.