ISLAMABAD: Foreign qualified MBBS doctors have finally appeared in the test being conducted by National Examination Board (NEB).

The test is a mandatory for the students who get MBBS degree from a foreign university and want to do medical practice in Pakistan.

As many as 3,124 MBBS graduates have participated in the NEB Part I, II and III examination since September.

Also read: PMDC to register degrees of 700 students

However, 38 graduates have refused to appear in the test and instead challenged the process in the Islamabad High Court, sources said.

The test is mandatory for the doctors who want to do practice in the country

As per Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) rules only those medical and dental graduates are exempted from the NEB examination who have Major Postgraduate’s qualification like diploma of American Board, FRCS (UK) or equivalent.

Those who have done MBBS in languages other than English have to clear the NEB test because it would help them in understanding medical terminologies in English.

The decision to make the test mandatory was taken following a number of complaints against the doctors who were unable to understand the terminologies in English.

Moreover, there were also complaints about the quality of education in foreign universities.

An official of the PMDC requesting not to be identified said that the purpose of NEB examination is to assess the competency and skills of medical and dental doctors to maintain minimum standards of medical and dental education.

“However, latest controversy started in 2013 as in 2007 and onwards as many as 1,000 Pakistani students went to Cuba on scholarship announced by Cuban government. The Higher Education Commission (HEC) supervised the process to award scholarships. When they returned and tried to do practice the PMDC refused to give them licence without clearing the NEB test and one year house job,” he said.

“The students are finding it boring to study again.That is why some of them have moved courts and others refused to take part in the test,” he said.

“However with the passage of time they have started to come to the terms with the process and the PMDC is also trying to facilitate them by offering them refresher courses and holding exams in different cities,” he said.

According to official statement as many as 464 graduates participated in the Part III NEB test held on November 8 and 9.

Around 40 renowned medical professionals from Islamabad, Rawalpindi and Karachi conducted the viva examination.

Result of these candidates will be declared within next 10 working days.

All those graduates who pass this examination will be eligible for registration with the PMDC and to get its licence to do medical practice in the country, says the statement.

The PMDC Registrar Dr Raja Amjad Mehmood while talking to Dawn said previously as many as 1,500 graduates appeared in Part-I, 1,160 in Part-II NEB tests.

“We offered one month refresher courses to the graduates to prepare them for the exams and most of them participated in the refresher courses and then in the NEB exams. I am sure that after clearing the exam foreign qualified graduates will serve the country,” he said.

Published in Dawn, November 10th, 2014