Nearly nine in ten medical colleges report poor infrastructure alongside issues of overwork and inadequate mental health support among medical staff, as per findings in a nationwide survey conducted by the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA).
The study, conducted across major institutions including AIIMS, PGIMER and JIPMER, collected over 2,000 responses, of which 90.4 per cent were from government colleges and 7.8 per cent from private ones. The survey has revealed alarming deficiencies in India's medical education system.
According to the FAIMA-Review Medical System (FAIMA-RMS) survey, 89.4 per cent of colleges cited poor infrastructure, 73.9 per cent of residents reported excessive clerical duties, and 40.8 per cent described their work environment as toxic.
While 71.5 per cent of respondents said they received adequate patient exposure, only 54.3 per cent reported regular teaching sessions, and 68.9 per cent felt laboratory and equipment facilities met requirements. However, timely stipends reached barely half of the respondents, and just 29.5 per cent said they had fixed working hours.
The survey also found that 55.2 per cent of medical staff faced shortages in manpower, directly affecting quality of education. Government colleges offered broader patient exposure but were burdened with heavier administrative workloads, while private colleges fared better in teaching regularity and faculty numbers.
Confidence in clinical skills stood at 70.4 per cent, though 57.4 per cent acknowledged a significant gap between theoretical knowledge and practical training.
FAIMA linked these structural problems to growing mental health concerns among students and residents. The survey follows a 2024 National Task Force review of medical education that had called for fixed duty hours, counsellor appointments in colleges, annual parental involvement in wellness programmes, and 10 days of mental health leave for medicos. One year later, FAIMA said, few of those recommendations have been implemented.
"We plan to submit the report to the authorities for corrective action. The goal is to align India's medical education network with global standards," FAIMA president Dr Akshay Dongardive told NDTV.
The association has urged the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to intervene and address the persistent gaps.
In its statement, the FAIMA said it would submit detailed recommendations to the National Medical Commission (NMC) and NITI Aayog on improving both the academic and mental well-being of medical professionals. However, it added that "multiple attempts have been made to meet the NMC chairman and other officials, but they have been unreachable," calling for greater engagement from regulatory bodies to address these long-standing issues.
