Following recurring incidents of suicides among medical students and young doctors, the National Medical Commission's (NMC) anti-ragging cell, in April 2024, formed a 15-member national task force on the mental health and well-being of medical students. This was at the behest of various student and doctors' associations regarding mental health in the medical education space.
The task force is conducting an anonymous online survey among medical students and young doctors to learn more about the issue. They are to submit a report by May 31.
Although students' associations welcome the steps, they insist on a more structured approach to looking after students' mental health. A big priority, they say, is dealing with the "toxic workplace" created by senior doctors and faculty. They also said that most of the onus falls on medical colleges which remain a place of "exploitation".
Increase in suicides
Suicide rates among medical students have been increasing over the past few years. The NMC, in reply to RTI activist Vivek Pandey's queries in February 2024, said that 119 medical students have died by suicide in the past five years across 512 government medical colleges. This includes 64 undergraduate students and 55 postgraduate students. The NMC also said that over 1,100 medical students also dropped out of college during this time frame.
The National Human Rights Commission India (NHRC), in a meeting held on April 25, even called attention to the "long working hours and continuous shifts, lack of proper restrooms, hygiene, lack of rest" of doctors. Medical interns and postgraduate doctors are often forced to work for 16-18 hours a day which, depending on the department they are working in, can even stretch to 48 hours of continuous work without sleep.
This story is from the May 2024 edition of Careers 360.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the May 2024 edition of Careers 360.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
100 Best Business Schools In The Country
For Careers360's 2025 B-school ranking, we ranked 100 public and private management institutions and rated over 500, dividing them into zones and city clusters
'We have a completion rate of 80-90%'
During an interaction, Mayank Kumar, co-founder and managing director of upGrad, spoke to Sheena Sachdeva about new courses in accounting and management, the profile of learners, trends in online MBA courses, and more. Edited excerpts from the conversation below
New roles and spaces
Online MBA has helped many working professionals climb up the office hierarchy or even pivot to an entirely new career. But there are challenges.
'Committed to industry-relevant learning'
International Management Institute (IMI), New Delhi, is India's first corporate-sponsored B-school. It offers three PG diplomas in management - the flagship PGDM with 300 seats, as well as human resource management and business and financial studies with 60 each. Himadri Das, director general, IMI, discussed the challenges posed by competition among private business schools, the importance of diversity, and IMI's NIRF rankings with Sanjay. Edited excerpts from the interview.
National Insurance Academy plans expansion to meet rising demand
The National Insurance Academy (NIA), now situated in Pune, was established jointly by the ministry of finance and all the major public sector undertakings (PSUs) in insurance. Originally a training institute for insurance industry professionals, it has been offering a postgraduate diploma in management (PGDM) since 2004 and has placed 100% of its students all through.
The era of MBA in sustainability
As companies are increasingly pushed to meet environmental compliances, management institutes are revamping their curricula with specialised MBA programmes in sustainability or launching new programmes
Despite good record, SRCC's PGDM faces degree hurdle
Delhi University's Shri Ram College of Commerce started its postgraduate diploma in Global Business Operations (GBO) 25 years ago. Principal Simrit Kaur spoke to Shradha Chettri on their effort to convert the diploma into a degree programme, changes required in the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) and more. Edited excerpts
Managing produce, from farm to plate
Agribusiness managers are in great demand, both on the 'input' side of agriculture - seeds, fertilizer, machinery businesses - as well as in the processing of the 'output'
Creating 'innovators with conscience'
The SP Jain Institute of Management and Research (SPJIMR), Mumbai, has been the top Indian institution in the Financial Times' (FT) Masters in Management rankings for two years in a row. Varun Nagaraj, dean of SPJIMR, spoke to Atul Krishna about what the institute does differently, its plans, the future of business education, and the FT and National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) lists. Edited excerpts below
'Quality management education that is equitable': FMS Dean
The Faculty of Management Studies (FMS) at the University of Delhi (DU) is one of India's premier business schools offering MBA courses at a relatively low cost, compared to most leading business schools in India. Celebrating its 70th year, it is also one of the first university-based business schools. In an interview with Sanjay, head and dean of FMS A Venkat Raman spoke about the functioning of a business school under a central university, challenges, courses and future plans. He also spoke on the Common Admission Test (CAT) and its impact on diversity in student cohorts. Edited excerpts
