Karnataka government will be shortly coming out with a notification entitled 'Anti Quackery Bill'. The bill seeks to bar doctors practising any other system of medicine other than the one in which they have expertise or have a recognised degree.

Speaking to Pharmabiz.com, Dr. R.Seethalakshmi, director, medical education, government of Karnataka said that the Karnataka government was serious about the issue. Registered medical practitioners would be allowed to practise in only those systems of medicine in which they had expertise. Accordingly a MBBS degree holder with a bonafide degree in Ayurveda would be allowed to practise in both systems of medicine.

Attempts by doctors to deal with a system of medicine outside their expertise would be made punishable under the proposed Anti Quackery Bill, she noted. The Bill would attempt to clearly define the word 'quack.'

It may be recalled that the Karnataka Branch of Indian Medical Association [IMA] had called for a two-day strike on December 22 and 23, 2001 demanding the passage of the Bill.

Dr. Seethalakshmi, who is the chairperson of the selection committee to the postgraduate courses conducted by the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences [RGUHS], informed that the recent High Court judgement quashing admissions made by the private management to the courses would stand. She said that the directorate of medical education had monitored the admission procedure based on the common entrance test [CET] held by the RGUHS.

She said that while the judgement was silent on in service and other quotas, the directorate had nonetheless carried out the counselling for such students and added that the norms laid by the Medical Council of India [MCI], and other statutory bodies would be followed. "The admission quota would be shared by the private management and the government colleges."

Noting that the government was promoting telemedicine in its units in Bangalore and Mysore, she said the department was using a dedicated online service - doctoranywhere.com. Plans were afoot to incorporate this online service at the various trauma centres being set up under the Karnataka Health Systems and Development Project [KHSDP] in the state.

Stating that telemedicine was being used in five hospitals in Bangalore and three in Mysore, she said that they had a link to a panel of experts at PGA, Chandigarh. "This system was helping the patients to get the best of medical care and its utilisation at the trauma centres and would help accident victims get help quickly."

Karnataka Directorate of Health and Family Welfare has sent a proposal to the Union government to set up a full-fledged trauma centre at the K R Hospital, Mysore and added that steps were being taken to establish the facility at the Bowring and Victoria Hospitals in Bangalore. The expansion project of the Wenlock Hospital in Mangalore is being taken up at a cost of Rs. 73 lakh.

In addition, the Karnataka Directorate of Health and Family Welfare have taken work to computerise the 14 major hospitals with state-of-the-art medical equipments. Steps are also being taken to set up a Nephro-Urology Institute at Bangalore's Victoria Hospital.

Karnataka's department of medical education had obtained permission to start two super-specialty courses in MCH Urology and MCH Plastic Surgery. Noting that candidates could apply for them after completing their MS, she said that admissions would commence after a common admission test conducted by a competent authority.