The Pakistan Medical Commission (PMC) — the regulatory body for medical education in the country — has started working to strengthen its technical relationship with international medical regulatory bodies for the global recognition of Pakistan’s National Licencing Exam (NLE) for medical graduates and professionals.
According to a PMC spokesperson, these efforts aim to achieve “the transfer of knowledge and technological skills” as well as the international recognition of the NLE to provide avenues for medical and dental graduates to capture the global job market and study abroad.
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According to him, the commission has taken serious steps to interact with international regulatory authorities and to ensure that its standards were recognised in key countries where Pakistani doctors were looking to pursue postgraduate education and jobs.
He said that the PMC has processed an application for recognition by the World Federation for Medical Education (WFME). He said that the WFME certification was mandatory for Pakistani doctors to be able to travel, get training and work abroad.
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He said that prior to WFME’s real evaluation and inspection, the PMC will work closely with the international regulatory body and other international organisations to ensure that all standards for recognition were properly completed.
The PMC spokesperson said that it was anticipated that the entire assessment process, including the WFME’s physical visit and inspection, will take 12 to 15 months (2024), when WFME recognition will be required in order to allow Pakistani doctors and students to study or work abroad especially in the United States.
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“The WFME recognition process has been started, and it runs through all of its phases with comprehensive data and information submissions made and reviewed in accordance with the WFME process steps, culminating in the final physical visit and assessment of the PMC and selected medical colleges,” he said.
“The commission put in a lot of work and kept at it for about 18 months to get ready for the WFME process, which is now over,” the spokesperson said.
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“The new 2022 national standards for recognition of medical and dental colleges and teaching hospitals, as well as the 2022 national medical and dental curriculum, have to be approved prior to putting up the formal application to WFME to start the process,” he said.
