Older Indians carry a large burden of disease and disability and pose a tremendous challenge for the health sector as well as also social and economic infrastructure. Several initiatives of Government of India namely: National Policy on Older Persons (1999), National Health Policy (2015 draft), National Population Policy (2015), Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, (2007) and the National Program for Health Care of the Elderly (2011, 2014), have emphasized the need for provision of quality and specialized health care of the older population.

This programme is meant to standardize and strengthen Forensic Medicine teaching at the post graduate level throughout the country so that it will benefit the judiciary and the legal system of the country in providing justice which will ultimately benefit the community at large. It will also help in achieving uniformity in undergraduate teaching.

Transfusion medicine is a unique multi-dimensional speciality that incorporates elements of blood banking, immunohematology, coagulation, and hematologyand integrates science technology, medicine, public health administration and the community as a whole. Because transfusion therapy has strong interrelationship with several other disciplines, particularly haematology and immunology, training programmes in transfusion medicine must include appropriate knowledge and skills in these subjects.

Oncology is a highly specialized and technical discipline in clinical medicine comprising treatment with ionizing radiations and cytotoxic agents as major arms in non-surgical management and treatment of cancer. With a view to update, by inclusion of newer topics, and to provide a uniform syllabus and course contents in Indian universities and teaching medical institutions, the proposed guidelines provide course outlines based on recent developments in clinical medicine and other disciplines related to oncology.

With the awareness of fitness among the youth in our country indulgence in various sporting activities is on the rise. Also participation of Indian sportsmen and athletes in various sporting events at a national and International level has increased in the last decade. Sports, whether competitive or recreational, has become fitness oriented and has led to an increase in the number of injuries due to sports.

The Goal of this program is to impart training in conventional and modern radiology and imaging techniques so that the post graduate student becomes well versed and competent to practice, teach and conduct research in the discipline of radiology. The student should also acquire basic knowledge in the various sub-specialities of radiology. These Guidelines also would also help to standardize Radiodiagnosis teaching at post graduate diploma (DMRD) level throughout the country so that it will benefit in achieving competent radiologist with appropriate expertise.

The Indian health care scenario is very complex and heterogeneous covering a range from world-class private tertiary care facilities to deplorably inadequate public services at all levels, including primary disease care. A system to provide affordable, accessible and effective health care and disease care to all the citizens of the nation is an urgent requirement of the country and should be based on a strong foundation of primary care and Family Medicine/ General Practice.

The Tropical Medicine programme is designed to provide the nation with specialist who are trained to address unique needs of patients in tropical environments that may not be emphasized in conventional/ traditional medicine training programs. MD (Tropical Medicine) will provide the ideal opportunity to tune the objectives of the post graduate level training in internal medicine to the health care needs of the nation.

Evolution of critical care medicine makes it imperative that the post graduates are trained in the basic principles of Pulmonary Medicine as applied to critical care. The person shall be abreast with the recent advances and developments in the specialty of Pulmonary Medicine. It is expected that the person will develop a spirit of enquiry and get oriented to apply recent advances and medical evidence to the practice of pulmonary medicine. He would also grasp the fundamentals of research methodology. Medical Science is dynamic with a continuous enhancement of knowledge.

Pharmacology consists of both the experimental (basic) and clinical sciences. Experimental pharmacology is essential to understanding of drug action in diseases as well as for the pharmaceutical industry for drug discovery and development. Clinical pharmacology is essential for prescribing practice in medicine, adverse drug reactions, clinical trial and pharmacovigilance. The job prospects for a medical pharmacologist are in academics, pharmaceutical industry/clinical research organization, government research institutions, in regulatory bodies and as scientific writer or science manager.

The Indian Association of Palliative care (IAPC) definition of Palliative Care (Medicine) states that “Palliative Care is the active total care applicable from the time of diagnosis, aimed at improving the quality of life of patients and their families facing serious life-limiting illness, through the prevention and relief of suffering from pain and other physical symptoms as well as psychological, social and spiritual distress through socially acceptable and affordable interventions”

The student who has obtained MD degree in Biochemistry should be well-versed in basic concepts and recent advances in the subject and should have acquired skills and expertise in various laboratory techniques applicable to metabolic and molecular aspects of medicine and in research methodology.

Nuclear medicine is a multi-disciplinary practice and the training of medical doctors is critical to the performance of a Nuclear Medicine department. Successful post graduate students are awarded a final certificate, degree or diploma that is recognized by the government, local health authority and hospital employer as an assurance of specialist competence in Nuclear Medicine. Post graduate training programme in Nuclear Medicine consists of an integrated training course of three years duration and would enable the post graduate student to practice nuclear medicine safely.

Community Medicine is an academic subject, a branch of Medicine which deals with promotion of health and prevention of diseases, involving people’s participation, utilizing professional management skills. The Community Medicine specialist, will inculcate a holistic view of health and medical interventions primarily focused on Community Health/Population Health.

post graduate student after undergoing the required training should be able to deal effectively with the needs of the community and should be competent to handle the problems related to his specialty including recent advances. S/He should also acquire skills in teaching of medical/para-medical students