Almost eight months after Medical Council of India (MCI) relaxed the maximum age of senior residents (SRs) who are considered to be the backbone of the country’s medical system, the Union Health Ministry has now finally instructed all its hospitals and autonomous bodies to enhance the appointment age of the SRs from 33 years to 37 years.

The much-awaited and much-needed move is expected to meet the shortage of the medical professionals who are presently overburdened with growing flow of patients in the health institutions like AIIMS, Safdarjung Hospital, and PGI, Chandigarh run by the Centre.

In fact, Delhi Government had, last December, already issued orders in this regard, enhancing the appointment age to 40 years for its hospitals, a senior Health Ministry official said.

The Union Health Ministry in a notification issued on February 6, also asked the States to consider the same in their health institutions too. Senior Resident Doctor(SR) are the one who have completed their post-graduation degree MD/MS/DNB with 3 years of junior residency. Any MBBS degree holder with 3 years of experience as junior resident in particular department can also become a senior resident.

“Senior Resident is one who is doing his/her residency in the concerned post graduate subject after obtaining PG degree (MD/MS) and is below 40 years of age”, as per the notification.

The move follows the MCI amending the relaxation policy in June last year.

The Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA), on behalf of senior residents, had written a letter to the Health Ministry stating that the central medical units were not following the guideline of MCI that mandate upon them to raise the age limit for appointment of SRs in various medical institutes in the country.

They had been pointing out that many doctors join their Post-Graduation after serving rural service bonds as high as 5 years after MBBS and bonds even after post graduation, they are well above age of 33 when they apply for SResidentships. Autonomous institutes such as AIIMS, PGI draw doctors from all over the country, implying many doctors fail to join these institutes on account of the age bar, said the official.