Quacks out

Delhi Medical Council acts against fake doctors in the city

Delhi Medical Council acts against fake doctors in the city

In a city where the medical facilities are bursting at seams, it is not difficult to get some patients -- even if you are not a qualified doctor.

BEWARE! An unauthorised clinic at Old Seemapuri. PIC/Imtiyaz Khan

Though Delhi claims to have one of the best medical infrastructures in the country, there is no dearth of those who ply their trade without possessing either the skill or the qualification. Quacks have been perennial problem for law-enforcing agencies in the national capital and in the latest measures against the medical menace the Delhi Medical Council has issued notices against 19 of them to shut down their shops immediately.

"All of them who are practicing allopathy at their respective medical clinics and are not registered with Delhi Medical Council have to immediately stop practicing allopathy and shut down their medical clinics," the notice read.

"They did not have an MBBS degree and were found practicing allopathy at their clinics," said Dr Girish Tyagi, Secretary, DMC.

The alleged quacks had been asked to produce their credentials before the DMC to evade punitive action. But soon it was found that they were not registered with DMC, violating the section 15(6) of the Delhi Medical Council Act 1997.

"When they came to submit their documents, we found that they were not registered with DMC, violating the guidelines of Delhi Medical Council Act 1997," added Dr Tyagi.

A copy of the letter has also been sent to Director Health Services (DHS), Chief District Medical Officer of the respective districts, Station House Officer (SHO) of the respective police stations, Deputy Commissioner of Police and Department of Health and Family Welfare.

New Medical cadre

Stressing that primary health care was the need of the hour, the Delhi high court directed the Medical Council of India (MCI) on Wednesday to prepare the curriculum for the three-year course on rural health care.
A division bench comprising chief justice Dipak Misra and justice Manmohan directed MCI to prepare the curriculum within two months for implementation within six weeks.
Appearing for MCI, senior advocate Amarendra Sharan, informed the court that all states have cleared the course and were ready to implement it.
Earlier, the court had asked the government to be sensitive towards the issue and said, "Health is primary concern of any homo sapien but since the time he was born he is fighting for getting the basic health care facilities, so it is the need of the hour to introduce the shorter MBBS course.
"The new course (Bachelors of rural health care) includes a three-year intensive classroom coaching and six months of internship. After passing the course a student has to work for five years in a rural area and then the student can do a two-year bridge course. A student who passes through will get a degree equivalent to MBBS," Sharan told the court.