Indira Gandhi National Open University

Bhubaneswar, Sept. 12: Tailor-made courses to suit the health requirements of the people of Orissa designed by Indira Gandhi National Open University (Ignou) are gaining popularity among young health professionals in the state.

“MBBS doctors, nurses and paramedical personnel are increasingly turning to these customised courses not just for specialisation, but also for a career jump. Every year we have almost 120 students passing out of our centre,” said regional director Ignou, S. K. Tripathy.

“In 2008, the state health department gave us an approval to design health-related academic material, especially to suit the needs of Orissa. Two years down the line, all the four programmes were designed by our experts,” said Tripathy.

“Not just youngsters but senior doctors, assistant district medical officers (ADMOs) and chief district medical officers (CDMOs) have enrolled in these customised health programmes to augment their career. It is not only promoting them to senior positions but also bringing them better job opportunities,” he added.

The uniqueness of these programmes is that they include face-to-face counselling and hands-on-skill development of students. To help students get practical exposure, the varsity has tied up with various institutes.

Orissa being a state with one of the highest maternal and infant mortality rate, the first course designed by the academic experts was diploma in maternal and child health.

For this programme, the varsity has tied up with the Neelachal Institute of Medical Sciences here.

Similarly, for postgraduate diploma in hospital administration, postgraduate diploma in clinical cardiology and BSc nursing for in-service nurses, the varsity has tied up with the SUM Hospital, Aditya Care Hospital and Hi-Tech College of Nursing respectively.

The postgraduate diploma in clinical cardiology has helped train a good number of MBBS doctors in non-invasive cardiology. Similarly, students enrolled in the hospital administration are taught to gain competence in providing effective hospital and healthcare services.

Mrunalini Das, an in-service nurse at a private hospital here, who had earlier completed the general nursing and midwifery course (GNM). She has enrolled in the BSc nursing programme offered by the varsity.

“The reason why I took up the programme is that it allows me to work and earn while I pursue this course. Besides, it will help me get promotion and fetch me a better pay. The programme is as good as a regular programme as we have 60 days of practical and provision of self-activity at workplaces. The activities are supervised by our seniors as part of the training process,” said Das.

Looking at the popularity of the programmes, the centre is now working towards launching a certificate course in diabetic care.