According to social media users and local media, the Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PMDC) has revoked a requirement for medical graduates to take the National Licensing Exam (NLC) in order to obtain permanent registration certificates.
When the claim was cross-checked, it was found to be true, as the PMDC issued a press release on Feb 10 stating that the decision was made after the Pakistan Medical Council (PMC), which was established during the PTI government, was converted back to the PMDC.
Federal government has abolished the mandatory licensing exam for medical graduates. Now, every student will automatically receive a license upon graduation. 🙆https://t.co/NvWNRthJP5
— Basit (@iBasitt) February 12, 2023
“As promised by Federal Health Minister Abdul Qadir Patel, PM&DC has started issuing permanent Registration Certificates from 8th February 2023 to doctors who graduated from Pakistani Medical and Dental colleges, without the requirement of National Licensing Examination (NLE),” read the press release.
As per the previous law of PM, the local graduates had to appear and pass the NLE exam before getting their permanent registration. The test was heavily criticized by the medical community asking the then PTI government to withdraw it.
Registrar PM&DC Dr. Suleman Ahmed said, as per the new Law of PM&DC Act 2022, Pakistan graduates having undergraduate degrees from foreign Institutions will take the National Registration Examination (NRE).
Meanwhile, Dr. Faisal Sultan, who served as former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s special assistant on health in 2020, defended the decision to take the NLE. He stated that the practise is common in the United Kingdom and the United States of America.
