GoI recently notified National Medical Commission Registered Medical Practitioner (Professional Conduct) Regulations, 2023 replacing Indian Medical Council (Professional conduct, Etiquette and Ethics) Regulations 2002. Here are the key provisions that doctors should be aware of:
Self-employed RMP shall display the unique registration ID assigned by EMRB in prescription, certificate, and money receipts given to patients.
Employed RMP shall get a seal made by the employer
for displaying the unique registration number below the RMPโs signatures.
Employed RMP shall get a seal made by the employer
for displaying the unique registration number below the RMPโs signatures.
An RMP should attend continuing professional development programs regularly each year, totalling at least 30 credit hours every five years.
Renewal of License to practice should be done every 5 years, after submitting documentation of CPD credit hours.
Renewal of License to practice should be done every 5 years, after submitting documentation of CPD credit hours.
RMP can refuse to treat or to continue to treat a patient if the fees, as indicated, are not paid. At the same time, this does not apply to doctors in government service or emergencies, but the doctor must ensure that the patient is not abandoned.
In case of abusive, unruly, and violent patients or relatives, the RMP can document and report the behaviour and refuse to treat the patient. Such patients should be referred for further treatment elsewhere.
Patients have right to refuse treatment, and this should be respected. RMP should communicate all possible outcomes of refusal to be treated esp. in emergency and acute conditions. It is important to document patientโs refusal to be treated and the reasons given for the refusal.
RMP should prescribe drugs using generic names written legibly and prescribe drugs rationally, avoiding unnecessary medications and irrational FDCs. In case of drugs with a narrow therapeutic index, biosimilars, and similar other exceptional cases, this practice can be relaxed.
Written Prescriptions should be legible and preferably in full CAPITALS to avoid misinterpretation. As far as possible prescriptions should be typed and printed to avoid errors.
RMP is can make announcement in any media within 3 months regarding the following: On starting practice, On change of type of practice, On changing address, On temporary absence from duty, On resumption of practice, On succeeding to another practice, Public declaration of charges
Announcements should not contain anything more than the name of the institution, type of patients treated or admitted, kind of doctors and staff training and other facilities offered and the fees.
Self-employed RMP shall maintain medical records of inpatients for 3 yrs from the date of last contact.
On request, medical records shall be supplied within 5 working days.
Within 3 yrs from the date of publication of these Regulations, RMP shall ensure fully digitized records.
On request, medical records shall be supplied within 5 working days.
Within 3 yrs from the date of publication of these Regulations, RMP shall ensure fully digitized records.
In an operation that may result in sterility, the consent of both husband and wife is required
In-vitro fertilization or artificial insemination shall be undertaken with the informed written consent of the female patient and her spouse as well as the donor.
In-vitro fertilization or artificial insemination shall be undertaken with the informed written consent of the female patient and her spouse as well as the donor.
RMP is free to choose whom he will serve, except in case of a life-threatening emergency.
Having accepted a case, the RMP should neither neglect the patient nor withdraw from the case without giving adequate notice to the patient and his family.
Having accepted a case, the RMP should neither neglect the patient nor withdraw from the case without giving adequate notice to the patient and his family.
All signatures in the notes, prescriptions, certificates, orders, referral summaries etc, should carry the RMPโs name and NMC Registration number. Electronic generation of orders/ prescriptions may help automation of this information.
RMPs and their families must not receive any gifts, travel facilities, hospitality, cash or monetary grants, consultancy fee or honorariums, or access to entertainment or recreation from pharmaceutical companies or their representatives, commercial healthcare establishments, ...
...medical device companies, or corporate hospitals under any pretext. However, this does not include salaries and benefits that RMPs may receive as employees of these organizations.
RMPs should not be involved in any third-party educational activity like CPD, seminar, workshop, symposia, conference, etc., which involves direct or indirect sponsorships from pharmaceutical companies or the allied health sector.
RMPs should avoid discussing the treatment of patients on public social media or prescribing medicine to patients on the public social media platform. RMPs should not post patientsโ photographs or scan images (ct/pet scans) on social media
Continuous Professional Development (CPD) Guidelines:-
Category 1 CPD: 70 % of the programme can be devoted to knowledge updates and skill development within the specified subject area essential for patient care
Category 1 CPD: 70 % of the programme can be devoted to knowledge updates and skill development within the specified subject area essential for patient care
Category 2 CPD: 30% of the programme should be devoted to cross-disciplinary areas including (list is not exhaustive) bioethics, professionalism, communication, public health, policy, evaluating evidence, biostatistics etc.
Self- directed online CPD/ scholarly work will constitute Category 3 CPD.
Not more than 50% of CPD shall be online/virtual/hybrid (Category 3).
Scholarly activities/CPD carried out by RMP internationally through conferences/ research work will also be counted in Category 3.
Not more than 50% of CPD shall be online/virtual/hybrid (Category 3).
Scholarly activities/CPD carried out by RMP internationally through conferences/ research work will also be counted in Category 3.
CPD credits must be obtained every year. It is expected to obtain 6 CPD points every year but at least 3 credit points must be obtained per year. A minimum of 30 CPD credit points must be obtained at the end of 5 years for renewal of license.
While faculty in recognised medical colleges /recognised DNBE hospitals are engaged in training of medical students, routine medical education will not be allocated CPD credit points. Thus, these faculty will be required to achieve the mandated CPD credit hours as for other RMPs.
Obtaining and duly recordingPatient's consent is mandatory for telemedicine consultation. If patient has initiated or solicited the telemedicine consultation, then the consent is implied. If the RMP initiates the consultation, then the consent is explicit and hence, mandatory.
The disciplinary action for misconduct may be graded at 5 levels:
1: Reformation
2: Suspension of license for up to 30 days
3: Suspension of license for up to 3 months
4: Suspension of license between 3 months to 3 yrs
5: Permanent suspension of license
1: Reformation
2: Suspension of license for up to 30 days
3: Suspension of license for up to 3 months
4: Suspension of license between 3 months to 3 yrs
5: Permanent suspension of license
SMC/EMRB/NMC can charge monetary penalty upto 10 times of the license fee in case it is found during misconduct complaint case that the RMP has not taken license to practice in the state.
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