An increase in the number of private hospitals has resulted in more demand for allied health professionals. To cater to this demand and to bring in more professionalism into the programme, the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS) has decided to re-brand its existing courses and increase the duration of its degree courses.
These decisions were taken at the varsity’s academic council meeting on Wednesday. The duration of the Bachelor of Science course in Allied Health Sciences has now been increased from three-and-a-half years to four years from the 2019-20 academic year. The internship programme has been extended from six months to one year.
Allied health professionals are a core group, which includes lab technicians and others, who assist doctors. The courses include medical lab technology, cardiac care technology, medical imaging technology, renal dialysis care, neuroscience technology, operation theatre technology, hospital administration and public health.
The university has amended the re-ordinance governing regulations and curriculum for Bachelor of Science course in allied health sciences.
R. Rajesh Shenoy, syndicate member and chairman, board of studies, allied health sciences, RGUHS and Director, Padmashree Group of Institutions, said there is good demand for allied health courses.
“Many corporate hospitals are coming up that there is a need for qualified people. Besides this, the four-year programme would be ideal for students who want to go abroad for their masters,” he said, adding that the changes are in accordance with the draft new education policy. “Most States in the country have already shifted to this format.”
The university has asked colleges to change their nomenclature. Colleges of Paramedical Sciences have been asked to change their name to the College of Allied Health Sciences. The university has initiated this move to account for the inclusion of a range of new courses. RGUHS plans to start over 20 new courses in the 2020-2021 academic year.
Besides, Vice Chancellor Prof. Sachidananda said that this is also being done to differentiate between diploma and degree courses. While the diploma programmes will be two years, degree courses will be four-year programmes.
Drop international
The Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences has asked a few affiliated colleges to drop the word ‘international’ from their names. The university has also asked some colleges to hire more faculty. It has put these conditions for renewal of affiliation.
