According to a decision taken in 2010 by the Maharashtra Medical Council, doctors would have to earn credit hours if they wish to renew their licence to practice medicine.
Even as the deadline for renewal of licences is drawing near, doctors in Pune are suddenly scurrying to gather credit points by attending seminars, medical conferences and publishing papers in medical journals.
According to a decision taken in 2010 by the Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC), doctors would have to earn credit hours if they wish to renew their licence to practice medicine. The hours can be earned in various ways and through programmes organised for doctors to update their skills.
The council, which hit on the idea to ensure doctors are updated with advances in modern medicine, said doctors would have to furnish proof of having updated their skills.
“Recently, MMC issued an advertisement that said the batch of doctors who got their licence renewed in 2006 and 2007 should now submit their applications for renewal of licence by March 31. The licence renewal has to be done every 5 years and a doctor has to earn 30 credit hours in 5 years,” said Dr Ambarish Shahade, president of the Indian Medical Association, Pune.
“Every year, the doctor has to earn six credit points and since the circular was issued 2 years ago, doctors have now to submit proof of having earned 12 credit hours,’’ he said.
However, since the deadline is now close, many doctors who failed to attend workshops or seminars are now headed to conferences to gather points, which until a few days ago saw moderate attendance.
“This week, 400 people have registered for the continuous medical education workshop organised by IMA. Since the decision was taken, IMA has been organising one CME each week, but the response was not as much as that seen in last couple of weeks. This is because people are worried about renewal of licences,’’ added Shahade.
While doctors are worried about consequences as those practising without valid licences are considered quacks, vice-president of IMA, Dr Devendra Shirole, said the MMC too is aware of the predicament of doctors, especially as this is the first time that such a rule is in force and is offering solutions.
“On January 15, IMA representatives have been called by MMC for a meeting in Mumbai. The MMC is thinking of introducing online CMEs for doctors to earn credit points and this will be discussed. This will be especially helpful for doctors from rural areas, who either don’t get many opportunities or cannot travel for such conferences or workshops,” said Shirole.
The second important proposal is to allow doctors to send applications for renewal to local IMA unit, which will verify their claims of earning credit points and, if found true, forward their applications to the MMC. This will help reduce the burden on the MMC and help local doctors in renewal of their licences.
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