• Urges prior feasibility study, opposes use of Homagama Base Hospital for NSBM’s clinical training
• Strap; Claims Govt. must first ‘protect’ existing state medical faculties
• GMOA claims new private faculties will ‘negatively impact health sector’

The Government Medical Officers' Association (GMOA) has raised concerns over the Medical Faculty to be established under the National School of Business Management (NSBM) Green University.

It was reported on Tuesday (12) that the Government has decided to establish a Medical Faculty at the NSBM, under the direct supervision and regulation of the ministries of Health and Education, and the Sri Lanka Medical Council.

Speaking to The Daily Morning yesterday (13), GMOA's Media Spokesperson Dr. Chamil Wijesinghe said that any decision pertaining to the expansion of medical education in the country, be it in the government or private sectors, should only be taken after a proper feasibility study. 

“There should be a proper study regarding the number of medical professionals and medical faculties that the country requires at present. If any medical faculty is to be established without such a study, it will bring about negative consequences as has happened in the past,” he said. 

He also said that before establishing private medical faculties, the Government should first work to resolve the issues that have arisen in the State medical faculties. “Almost all State medical faculties are in a state of crisis at present. The Medical Faculties of the Sabaragamuwa, Moratuwa, and Wayamba Universities are notable among them. The Government's responsibility is to protect them first. If they do not, and prioritise establishing private medical faculties, it will negatively affect the health sector at large,” he said.

As many as 500 local and foreign students are expected to be annually enrolled for the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery degree offered by the NSBM, a fully self financed institution owned by the Government. For this purpose, the NSBM has sought the Government’s approval to reserve the Homagama Base Hospital as a suitable Government Hospital to provide clinical training for its medical students. Dr. Wijesinghe said that the Executive Committee of the GMOA had decided to strongly object to such a move as the Homagama Hospital is already being used to provide clinical training to the medical students of the Sri Jayewardenepura University.