Allied courses: A lucrative route

 Several students of the medical stream also gravitate towards paramedical courses. These highly specialised courses not only cover a wide range of medical-related segments, but are also job-intensive and highly in demand. Some such courses are:

BSc Nursing is a four-year UG programme focused on developing critical care advanced thinking skills proficiency and values necessary for the practice of professional nursing and midwifery. Students of medical stream with 45%aggregate marks are eligible for admission to these courses. However, some universities like AIIMS conduct their own entrance exams for admission to BSc nursing courses. Job opportunities include community health nurse, registered nurse, nursing superintendent, military nurse, etc.

BSc Medical Lab Technology is of three-year duration. It offers practical and theoretical knowledge of the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of various kinds of diseases and health problems with the help of clinical laboratory tests. It is also known by different names like Clinical Laboratory Science or Clinical Laboratory Technology or Medical Laboratory Science.

Bachelor’s of Radiation Technology is also a three-year full-time academic programme that enables the candidates to gain knowledge of new imaging techniques used in the accurate diagnosis of illness. Radiation Technology combines theoretical and clinical instructions covering topics such as physiology, anatomy, radiation physics, radiation imaging, radiation protection, positioning of patients, radiographic techniques, medical terminology, and patient care procedures.

BSc Operation Theatre Technology deals with different aspects of medical treatment pertaining to operation theatre technology in addition to routine checkups and clerical work. The degree programme is designed to teach students various techniques used in an operation theatre such as sterilisation, disinfection, etc.

Bachelor’s in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology is a four-year undergraduate degree. This course involves three years of classroom training and one year of mandatory internship. It helps develop skills to diagnose and treat patients suffering from hearing and speech-related disorders. On completion of the degree, students can work as audiologist, audiometric technician, speech-language therapist, hearing aid specialist and speech pathology reader.

BSc optometry is a three-year UG course that teaches the fundamentals of eye health, starting from the basics, and gives detailed knowledge about all the machinery and devices used in optometry. It provides extensive training and medical knowledge about the human eye. Apart from making the fundamentals of human eye clear, the course also teaches how to operate various types of medical equipment.

Hospital and Healthcare Management A degree in hospital management or in healthcare management is currently one of the most in-demand degrees. The programme normally is of four-year duration. Graduates are involved in monitoring the healthcare process in large medical organisations. With their engagement, communication between various departments in hospitals is usually more coordinated and more efficient. There are different career paths in the medical field based on your level of education. After completing your medical training, you can select the right organisation, industry or hospital.

Bachelor of Physiotherapy (BPT)

Bachelor of Physiotherapy (BPT) is a 4-year degree programme followed by 6 months of rotatory internship. The course focuses on employing physical forces like heat, pressure, electricity, etc. to assist the body in healing itself. Physiotherapy is a branch of medical sciences that deals with the prevention and treatment of physical dysfunction in patients. It includes examination, diagnosis, treatment, and advice for correction of a physical disorder or dysfunction. BPT admissions are mostly done on a merit basis.

What to expect from college

The MBBS course starts with the basic pre-clinical subjects such as biochemistry, physiology, anatomy, microbiology, pathology and pharmacology. The students are given hands-on training in the wards and OPDs. The curriculum aims to inculcate standard protocols of history taking, examination, differential diagnosis and complete patient management. The student is taught to determine what investigations will be useful for a patient and the best treatment options. The curriculum also contains a thorough practical knowledge and practice of performing standard clinical procedures. The course also contains a 12-month-long internship across various specialties.

NIRF 2022 Top Ten

AIIMS, New Delhi 1

PGIMER, Chandigarh 2

Christian Medical College, Vellore 3

National Institute of Mental Health & Neuro Sciences, Bangalore 4

Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi 5

Jawaharlal Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education & Research, Puducherry 6

Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow 7

Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Coimbatore 8

SCTIMST, Thiruvananthapuram 9

Kasturba Medical College, Manipal 10

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