15,000 doctors who are currently taking training in UK and 10,000 doctors who are retiring from their jobs are to return to India. Some of them are likely to join 7 AIIMS like institutes that are being planned in Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan.

These new institution would have 850-bed hospital, and super specialty facilities and 39 departments covering all major disciplines of medicine. The medical colleges will also have the provision to take in 100 undergraduate students each per year as well as facilities for imparting Post Graduate and doctoral courses in various disciplines.

Our View: This is a good news, if it happens. What is the time frame? We don’t know. The reason behind the return of 15,000 doctors who are currently under training is not given. Are they returning because they want to serve India or they are being forced by the situation to do so? Important to note that government had already recognized the doctors with a PG from US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand; also they can come and practice directly after returning. Also, government is considering similar policy for countries like France, Germany, Russia, Denmark, Ireland, Sweden, Italy, Singapore, South Africa and Spain. All this is being done to target the acute shortage of doctors in the country. Presently we have one doctor per 1,634 people. In rural India, nearly 67% of doctors who are enrolled remain absent from duty.

Links:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/25000-Indian-origin-British-doctors-to-return-to-India/articleshow/5407439.cms
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Docs-with-foreign-PG-set-to-get-govts-nod/articleshow/3256827.cms