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🇳🇵 Nepal /Health & Science

Nepal probes foreign doctors over suspected ghost faculty at medical colleges

From Kathmandu Post · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • Nepal's Medical Council is investigating foreign doctors over suspected fake credentials and ghost faculty at medical colleges.
  • A committee will examine documents submitted by 300-500 foreign doctors, mostly from India, who teach at private medical colleges.
  • The probe aims to ensure genuine faculty and prevent colleges from manipulating monitoring processes to increase student seat numbers.

Nepal's Medical Council is launching an investigation into foreign doctors working in the country, suspecting counterfeit credentials and the use of "ghost faculty" at medical colleges. The council has formed a committee to scrutinize the documents and employment status of an estimated 300 to 500 foreign doctors, predominantly from India, who are registered to teach at private medical institutions.

We have formed a committee to examine documents submitted by all foreign doctors seeking to serve in Nepal.

— Dipendra PandeyActing registrar at the Nepal Medical Council, explaining the formation of the investigative committee.

Council officials suspect that private medical colleges are inflating their faculty numbers to meet regulatory requirements and increase the number of student seats. These colleges allegedly present foreign doctors only during monitoring visits, with the doctors returning to their home countries afterward. Complaints from students suggest that some listed faculty members do not actually teach, deceiving both students and regulatory bodies.

We suspect that private medical colleges bring in foreign doctors only to present them during our monitoring visits.

— Dipendra PandeyActing registrar at the Nepal Medical Council, detailing the suspected practice of colleges.

The investigation comes as the Medical Education Commission prepares to conduct integrated entrance examinations for undergraduate medical education. The commission determines the number of available seats based on criteria such as infrastructure, faculty, and patient load. The council believes colleges are manipulating this process by temporarily bringing in foreign doctors and arranging for increased patient flow during inspections.

Some foreign doctors are there only when the colleges are being inspected, but they return to their home countries and work there at other times.

— Council officialAn unnamed council official, speaking on condition of anonymity, described the alleged transient nature of some foreign faculty.

Historically, the Medical Council's representatives were part of the monitoring teams. However, the Medical Education Commission no longer includes council representatives, a change that officials believe allows colleges to be tipped off about inspections and present a false impression of their faculty and facilities. The council has expressed serious doubts about the authenticity of documents submitted by various institutions for the registration of foreign doctors.

We have also received complaints from students that colleges claim certain doctors as faculty members, but they do not actually teach. Students have been deceived by the colleges.

— Council officialAn unnamed council official, relaying student complaints about misrepresented faculty.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Kathmandu Post. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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