PMC issues guidelines for house job inductions

Islamabad : Unveiling the house job induction policy for the year 2022, the Pakistan Medical Commission has directed all teaching hospitals in the country to get accreditation and registration for the programmes under which new medical graduates get clinical experience.

According to the policy, under the PMC Act, 2020, and the regulations framed thereunder, teaching hospitals are required to be accredited and registered with the PMC for offering and undertaking house job programmes.

In Phase I, all teaching hospitals affiliated with registered medical and dental colleges have been granted provisional accreditation based on existing records. In addition, non-affiliated public teaching hospitals undertaking postgraduate programmes shall be granted provisional accreditation based on the existing records on verification of the bed strength by the relevant provincial governments.

In Phase II, all teaching hospitals granted provisional accreditation shall be required to submit the necessary data within three months for enabling inspection and on successful inspection, the full accreditation and registration shall be issued.

Any hospital desirous to undertake a house job programme in its entirety or in partnership with other hospitals may apply and shall be inspected on an immediate basis for consideration of accreditation and registration.

The provisional accreditation list of teaching hospitals affiliated with registered medical and dental colleges for MBBS and BDS house job programmes has been notified. The list of hospitals offering house jobs but not affiliated with colleges shall be notified later.

A teaching hospital may induct medical or dental graduates (Pakistani or foreign) holding a provisional license as house officers.

A teaching hospital shall not induct more than the allocated seats notified in the provisional accreditation list.

Particulars of all house officers inducted by a teaching hospital shall be submitted by the teaching hospital to the commission through the institution's portal in the prescribed manner.

A house officer must complete his/her house job from the same teaching hospital inducted and shall not be permitted to transfer to another teaching hospital.

There shall be no unpaid or lower-paid house jobs.

All teaching hospitals shall pay each house officer a stipend not less than the stipend notified by the relevant federal or provincial government.

A medical or dental college shall be required to mandatorily offer a house job position to its graduates on a priority basis, while a college unable to offer its graduates a house job position shall be liable to return it to the teaching hospital, where such graduate obtains a position for undertaking their house job.

A graduate may elect voluntarily not to undertake a house job at the teaching hospital affiliated with their graduating college and may apply to any other teaching hospital whereupon the graduating college shall not be liable to pay the stipend. The teaching hospital inducting the graduate shall be liable to directly pay the stipend.

A teaching hospital may be accredited for both MBBS and BDS house job programmes based on declared resources. Teaching hospitals accredited for rotations only shall not directly induct any house officers and may only offer relevant rotations to house officers inducted by a teaching hospital duly accredited for an MBBS or BDS programme.