Aiming to create trained human resource for carrying out research activities for improving patient management and public health in the country, the Department of Health Research (DHR) has launched a scheme to provide advanced training to medical and health research personnel in India and abroad in cutting edge research areas concerning medicine and health.

The main aim of the scheme, ‘Human Resources Development for Health Research’, is to provide advanced training in cutting edge research areas concerning medicine and health for training in India and abroad and to encourage trained manpower to carry out research activities in cutting edge areas and management of patients in the medical colleges across the country.

The scheme is also aimed to increase the overall availability of trained personnel for health research from medical colleges across the country through scholarships, fellowships and career advancement scheme etc. for faculty and young medical doctors and other scientists to take up medical and health research as a career.

The scheme will focus on the creation of a cadre of trained medical/health researchers in specific identified priority areas of health research viz., clinical trials; toxicology; good clinical practices (GCP); good laboratory practices (GLP); quality control (QC) & QA; genomics; proteomics; clinical psychology, geriatrics; modern biology; biotechnology; stem cells; genetics; drugs chemistry; and operational research, etc.

This is also aimed to create, support, nurture and encourage the trainees from these medical colleges to forge linkages with other scientists from universities, research institutes, etc. to develop multidisciplinary and multi-sectoral teams necessary for addressing critical national and local health problems.

The scheme will establish suitable online teaching and learning facilities to facilitate training in health research in various subjects in a more effective manner and for promoting biomedical/health research.

The scheme mainly focuses on the development of research capabilities in the medical colleges/institutions of the country, with the targets of providing about 2585 fellowships/ rainings/scholarships to mid-career/senior faculty/young post-graduate students in the 12th Plan Period (2013-14 to 2016-17), including the women scientists who had a break in the career, etc.

The scheme will provide assistance to 50 domestic medical colleges/ institutions for providing training in the focused areas of research through specially designed courses. About 2/3of the fellowships will be given to medical colleges/medical institutions in government sector.