Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Despite an acute shortage of psychiatrists in the state, medical colleges here offer barely two or three seats at the Postgraduate (PG) level.
Comparatively speaking, other branches fare way better, with the most seats available in Gynaecology.
Psychiatrists point out that there is a dearth of experts across the country, with barely 1 available for every 10-lakh population, and so, the government should consider increasing PG seats.
Medical education officials mention that there was a time when medical colleges had no seats for the branch, so things are looking up.
Dr Satyakant Trivedi, psychiatrist, said, “There is an acute shortage of psychiatrists all over the country. In MP, medical colleges have very few seats for the branch, and the government should take a serious look at that.”
Psychiatrist Dr Ruma Bhattacharya said, “Only 10,000 psychiatrists are registered in the country with a 140-crore population, which is roughly 1 psychiatrist per 10 lakh population. During my time,I had to go to Mumbai to pursue a PG in Psychiatry. Now, seats are available in medical colleges, but still very few.”
Director, Medical Education, Dr A.K. Shrivastava agreed, “The highest number of seats are available in Gynaecology. Medical colleges are currently offering two to three seats in Psychiatry.
But we are aware of the situation and are looking into it. The main reason is that there is no role of psychiatry at the UG level, so at the PG level also, fewer seats are allotted.”
