'COMPETENCY-BASED CURRICULA CAN BE GAMECHANGER IN HEALTH EDUCATION, BUT TOUGH TO IMPLEMENT'

New standardised curricula launched by the Union Health Ministry and NCAHP aim to reform allied healthcare education across ten key professions, but experts stress the need for faculty training, regulatory clarity, and infrastructure support.

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The recent launch of competency-based curricula for ten allied and healthcare professions by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, in collaboration with the National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions (NCAHP), has been welcomed as a landmark step in overhauling India’s fragmented and often unregulated allied health education system.

Experts from across the medical, academic, and healthcare industry landscape have endorsed the reform for its promise to standardize training and elevate patient care. However, they also warn that the road to implementation is fraught with logistical, infrastructural, and regulatory challenges.

The curricula will cover a broad spectrum of professions, such as Physiotherapy; Applied Psychology and Behavioural Health; Optometry; Nutrition and Dietetics; Dialysis Therapy Technology and Dialysis Therapy; Radiotherapy Technology; Medical Radiology and Imaging Technology; Anaesthesia and Operation Theatre Technology; Health Information Management; and Physician Associates. In competency-based curricula, the emphasis is on what the learner is able to do rather than what he or she knows. Introducing in allied professions will help enhance the effectiveness of skill-based training, better align educational outcomes with industry needs, and promote greater career mobility and professional recognition for allied health professionals nationwide

The need for standardisation