The United States has said that India's recognition system for under-graduate medical courses is at par with theirs, an achievement that could facilitate mobility of doctors from New Delhi to the United States.
National Committee on Accreditation in the US, the apex body responsible for foreign accreditation, has granted parity to the recognition system in India for the courses.
"The MCI had sought parity status from the National Committee on Accreditation. It was granted last month, which means quality wise, the under-graduate courses in India are at par with the US," Dr Vedprakash Mishra, Vice-Chancellor, Datta Meghe Institute of Medical Sciences University, who was part of the MCI team to negotiate with the US agency, told media persons at the Indo-US Healthcare Summit in New Delhi.
The parity has been granted for two years.
"During this period, our recognition system will be monitored by them. Then India will get permanent parity status," he said.
The parity does not give automatic passage to the US or any other country. But the standards of education will be treated at par with the US which will facilitate the students' mobility to that country, Dr Hemant Patel, President, American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin, said.
The parity status was given on six parameters -- curriculum, teaching, method of evaluation, extension, research and impact of education processes.
At present, there is no accreditation system in India. The MCI has only laid down certain procedure for recognition of the courses.
"Now an accreditation policy has been prepared. It waits approval of the government," Mishra said.
The Indo-US summit on Healthcare, which started today, will discuss mainly how to deal with the common diseases in India.
"These diseases are HIV/AIDS, TB, hepatitis, diabetes, hearth diseases, mental ailment, reproductive healthcare and emergency medicines," Dr Ajay Kumar, president Indian Medical Association, told PTI.
"We will deliberate on how these diseases are dealt in the US vis-a-vis India and try to find a suitable mechanism for handing these ailments. We will submit a White Paper to the government after the summit," he said.
