PMDC | Pakistan

The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) on Friday expressed “deep concern” at the suspected suicide of a third-year medical student in Mirpurkhas. The 21-year-old student died in a suspected suicide on the night between April 8 and 9. According to media reports, her family has accused a teacher and fellow students of harassing her prior to her death. In a statement issued today, the regulatory body’s president, Dr Rizwan Taj, condemned the circumstances surrounding her death, “particularly the serious allegations of harassment”. He termed the loss of life “deeply alarming under such distressing circumstances,” expressing support for an inquiry by the Sindh government. As per the statement, the PMDC president said that the “investigation must thoroughly examine (the incident) and details be provided to the PMDC for further action”. The regulatory body asserted that its attitude towards harassment was “intolerable”, recalling that it had directed medical and dental colleges across the country last year t...

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council announced on Wednesday that universities may allow a one-time reduction of up to three per cent in the Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT) passing percentage for admissions to medical and dental colleges to fill vacant seats for the academic session 2025–26. A notification issued by the PMDC, which is available with Dawn, said the decision had been made on the recommendation of a parliamentary committee. The notification said: “To address the issue of vacant seats in MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery) and BDS (Bachelor of Dental Surgery) programmes fairly and systematically, the matter, after deliberation at the national level, including the Health Standing Committees, has been thoroughly reviewed by the PMDC Council. “Accordingly, it has been decided that any admissions or processes already completed under the Admission Regulations 2025 shall remain valid and shall be treated as properly regulated.” It added that universities that...

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) on Tuesday announced that it would hold the National Equivalence Board (NEB) examination on May 16, with the PMDC chairperson terming it the “best opportunity” for students affected by the US-Israeli war on Iran. The PMDC conducts the NEB exam twice a year to assess the knowledge, clinical skills, and professional competence of students who have partially completed medical or dental education abroad and seek transfer to/ admission in Pakistan. The exam is computer-based and consists of multiple-choice questions. Speaking to Dawn, PMDC Chairperson Dr Rizwan Taj said, “Although students from across the world can appear in the exam, but it will provide the best opportunity to those who have been stuck [due to the war] and want to return to Pakistan without facing any loss of education and time.” He said that Pakistani students, who were enrolled in foreign medical or dental institutions, had completed two years of study and reached at least the third year...

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) on Monday took notice of what it called a “disturbing incident” regarding the filming of patients mid surgery at Lahore’s Lady Willingdon Hospital. The video in question, which was widely shared on social media, showed doctors performing what appeared to be C-sections on two patients in the same operating theatre, with a medical curtain in the middle. The person filming the video can be heard saying that a “competition was underway”. On Saturday, the Punjab government had suspended the medical superintendent (MS), head of the gynae department, a woman medical officer, five postgraduate resident doctors, two nurses, and a hospital staff member due to the incident. In a statement released on Monday, the PMDC said, “According to initial reports, a video recorded inside an operating theatre, purportedly showing medical staff engaging in unprofessional conduct and inappropriately treating surgical procedures, has circulated widely.” It said the incident had...

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) on Thursday took notice of the alleged death by suicide of a medical student from Lahore’s Fatima Jinnah Medical University (FJMU) and sought a report. Moreover, observing the lack of strengthened student support systems, the council also advised all medical and dental colleges to hire qualified counsellors/psychologists to provide timely guidance, and mental and physical health support to students in distress. On Tuesday night, a 22-year-old female student allegedly died by suicide after jumping from the fourth floor of a hostel at FJMU. The student in question was a resident of Azad Jammu and Kashmir and was living in the varsity’s government hostel in Lahore. On Thursday, a letter from the PMDC registrar to the FJMU principal, available with Dawn, stated that in light of the seriousness of the incident and its impact on the student community, the council was directing the college to share a factual account of the incident so that the medical body ma...

LARKANA: The management of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Medical University (SMBBMU) has urged the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council to review the admission criteria for admissions to MBBS and BDS for the session 2025-26 to help fill the vacant seats in private medical and dental educational institutions of Sindh. It was learnt on Thursday that the SMBBMU registrar had last month approached the PMDC and drew his attention to the seats in the private institutions going vacant as candidates failed in meeting the criteria of the admission. In a letter, he stated that approximately 350 MBBS seats remained vacant due to the failure of aspirants in meeting the existing PMDC criteria. It said the SMBBMU, Larkana, has received multiple requests from private medical and dental colleges, expressing serious concern over the inability to fill those seats despite repeated admission rounds. SMBBMU seeks 10pc reduction for MBBS and BDS programmes The registrar said that during the previous academic year, the passing cri...

The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) has postponed the Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT) 2025 in view of the severe flooding across the country.

ISLAMABAD - Federal Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal visited the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) and inaugurated the newly developed MDCAT question bank on Thursday.

The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) has officially released the schedule for the MDCAT 2025, announcing that the nationwide exam will be held on October 5.

The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) has officially released the updated curriculum for the Medical and Dental Colleges Admission Test (MDCAT) 2025, with the exam tentatively scheduled for the last week of September or the first Sunday of October.

ISLAMABAD: An Intelligence Bureau (IB) report claims that an “organised system of corruption” has been prevalent in the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC), specifically highlighting the “fraudulent” establishment and recognition of Bahawalpur Medical College (BMC), according to a document available with Dawn. However, the current PMDC management has distanced itself from the allegations, asserting that any wrongdoing occurred in the past and that new checks and balances have now been introduced. “It is learnt that there is an organised system of corruption prevalent in PMDC primarily due to excessive discretionary powers and a lack of transparency,” the report stated. “A perception persists that heavy bribe is a norm for recognition of private medical and dental colleges as well as their affiliated teaching hospitals and for their inspections.” The report further alleged, “Repor­tedly, private medical colleges pay approximately Rs10 million per seat for the allocation of additional student seats. Anot...

The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) has officially finalized a directive to cap fees for medical and dental education, aiming to make private medical education more affordable.