Family Adoption Program, A Way Forward to Community Based Medical Education.... Challenges Ahead

Abstract

Medical education in India is based predominantly on hospital environments and specialist services covering a narrow spectrum of health problems, with especially dependent on technology. A significant reorientation is needed in medical education, to allow students to understand people in their social contexts in a more holistic way, rather than seeing them merely as parts of a biological machine.1 National Medical Commission (NMC) in their recent notification included Family Adoption Program (FAP) in the undergraduate curriculum to provide a learning opportunity towards community-based health care to Indian Medical Graduates.2 The NMC documented its vision as “to provide for medical education system that improves access to quality and affordable medical education, ensures availability of adequate and high-quality medical professionals in all parts of the country; that promotes equitable and universal health care that encourages community health perspective and makes services of medical professionals accessible to all citizens; that promotes national health goal.”