1.The MCI in its proposed UG Medical Education 2010 in its introductory part had highlighted “VISION – 2015” having the national goal Health for All by reforming the medical training to produce capable physicians for first contact and to provide basic medical services and quality health care both rural and urban areas of the country. While the MCI expressed its concern about the burden of diseases in India perhaps it has forgotten another kind of medical service which is an obligatory duty of a registered medical practitioner towards the state & society i.e., the medico legal service assisting the judiciary in preventing crimes against human beings. To achieve that objective the subject of F.M. &T. should be treated as a core subject and not an elective subject while imparting training to the medical students. As per the prevailing law of the land a passed out doctor must have reasonable knowledge of Forensic Medicine to render his medico legal service. This responsibility of a doctor cannot be withdrawn without amending the current IPC, CrPC, & Indian Evidence Act. On the other hand if that subject will be considered as elective (optional) the doctor will have a right to refuse to attend medico legal cases expressing his/ her incompetency pleading lack of training & skill in the subject. Hence Forensic Medicine cannot be an elective subject and it must be in the core subject group (compulsory).
2. The MCI which is advocating integrated teaching programme contradicting its claim in disintegrating an integrated subject by fragmenting the branches of Forensic Medicine & Toxicology. If the subject will be taught in fragmentation there will be very negligible impact in the development of skill & knowledge in the mind of the trainee & as such it will yield adverse result in the interpretation of medical facts during the administration of justice. Hence the subject of F.M. & T. should not be disintegrated rather recent advances in the technology should be included in the syllabus to make it more useful.
3. The subject of F.M. &T. should not be grouped under pre or paraclinical disciplines but under clinical discipline because of acquiring inter disciplinary knowledge. After the students are equipped with pre & paraclinical knowledge & involving themselves in clinical subjects like surgery, ortho,O&G, casualty dept., blood bank, anesthesiology and other clinical disciplines the teaching of F.M.&T. will be more effective because the very definition of forensic medicine (as accepted by law) is “Application of knowledge and principles of medicine in the court room for administration of justice.”Therefore Forensic Medicine should be taught from 3rd to 9th semester and the examination should be conducted at the end of 9th semester.
4. Forensic Medicine is not a theoretical subject it is very much practical oriented, unless a student have practical knowledge he/she cannot meet to the expectations of the investigating agencies & judiciary who mostly depend upon the medical opinion to deliver the justice. Therefore it should be made mandatory for exposure of the students to practical medico legal problems like Post mortem examination ( including skeletal examination ) –FORENSIC PATHOLOGY, Examination of injury cases including examination of weapon of offence – FORENSIC TRAUMATOLOGY, Examination of sexual assault case – SEXUAL JURISPUDENCE , Estimation of Age , Paternity in disputed cases , cases of alcohol intoxication etc..- CLINICAL FORENSIC MEDICINE & management, preservation, documentation & analysis of poisons – FORENSIC & ANALYTICAL TOXICOLOGY. Therefore for the interest of the students (would be doctors) & for the larger interest of the society before giving permission / approval the MCI should insist upon the institutions for a functional unit in this regard like functional mortuary to conduct medico legal autopsy , functional casualty dept. for clinical forensic medicine, separate toxicology unit & required laboratory facilities to start or continue medical education , just like requiring no. of beds/ units/ dept. in the clinical disciplines.
5.While the IMA & MCI are pressing hard for inclusion of a man of medicine to the tribunals like consumer court dealing with cases of medical negligence apprehending miscarriage of justice due to mis interpretation of medical facts , suggestions of BOG to outsource a lawyer to teach medical jurisprudence to the medical students appears unjustified. For of the information of the BOG-MCI we want to point out that the forensic medicine experts are taking orientation classes for judiciary and police officers in their respective academies as per the current national programme suggested by Honorable Supreme Court.
6. It is our experience that the clinicians are so busy to involve themselves in medico legal works like repeated examination by the police & deposing evidences in the court. It is a practical knowledge learned from the investigating agencies that the police has to run from post to pillar to get a medico legal report(wound certificate) from the clinicians and at time fail to get it causing hurdles in investigations. It is also at times adversely reflected in the verdict of judiciary.
Last but not the least everybody knows that MCI is a professional body constituted by the representatives of RMP either elected or nominated. The members are not the representatives of the Govt. but advisors to the Govt. A slightest wrong advice will not only affect the medical profession but may cause severe damage to national health programme. Therefore before suggesting any reforms in the medical education the BOG-MCI should consult each and every dept. (Health, Home & Law) directly or indirectly involved in this reformation.
Regards
Team
Dept. of Forensic Medicine & Toxicology,
KIMS, Bhubaneswar,
Odisha
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