All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi

Location

AIIMS is located in Ansari Nagar in Delhi. It is adjacent to the South Extension-II market, and lies on the south-eastern quadrant of Aurbindo Marg and Inner Ring Road crossing. Across AIIMS is Safdarjung Hospital and associated Vardhman Mahavir Medical College (of Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University). Also, adjacently lies the headquarters of Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the body that coordinates and funds medical research in India. In vicinity, also lies National Medical Library, run by the Directorate-General of Health Services (DGHS) of the Government of India. It has a vast collection of scientific and medical journals that can be accessed by researchers. Farthest along the stretch is the NAMS house.

AIIMS-II

The second campus of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS-II),spread over 330 acre's(1.335 square kilometres) of land was visualised during period of Prof. Tirath Das Dogra as Director AIIMS Delhi and Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss, (President, AIIMS) Minister of Health and Family welfare union of India in 2009 at Badhsa village in Haryana`s Jhajjar district. AIIMS-II was thought to be developed as the largest Medical Education centre for super-specialities in the World. Its beginning was launched on 30 May 2012 It is being built at a cost of ₹10 billion (US$150 million). Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad inaugurated Outreach OPD of AIIMS on 24 November 2012. Government is also planning to open National Cancer Institute within the campus of AIIMS Jhajjar.

All India Institute of Medical Sciences Act,1956

AIIMS Delhi is governed by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences Act,1956.

History

AIIMS was established in New Delhi after former Indian prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru's initial proposal to set up the institute in Calcutta was turned down by the then Chief Minister of West Bengal Bidhan Chandra Roy. It was the vision of Rajkumari Amrit Kaur, the first Health Minister of India, to establish an institute of such nature in India.

Rankings

AIIMS Delhi was ranked at third place in the first list of the Times Higher Education India Reputation Rankings, published alongside the Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings in 2013. AIIMS has been consistently ranked the top medical college in India to pursue any Medical degree by India Today in annual surveys starting in 1997 and was ranked No. 1 in 2013. AIIMS has held the top slot for the last six years in a row, and has been ranked first for 11 out of the 12 years that India Today has conducted the survey. AIIMS was ranked No. 1 in the Outlook India ranking of medical colleges in 2013 and ranked #1 in the Careers360 ranking of medical colleges in 2016.

AIIMS' excellence has to do with several factors – small class size, excellent library facilities, liberal clinically oriented teaching, research exposure and the ability to set its own curriculum.

Several surveys by The Week and Outlook magazines have named AIIMS the best hospital in India overall, as well as the best in several individual fields such as Cardiology, Neurology, Gastroenterology, Gynaecology and Ophthalmology, ahead of several specialised institutions.

The hospital has been able to maintain high standards of quality while seeing large numbers of patients (3.5 million in 2006) at very low cost to patients (₹10 (15¢ US)), many of whom live in extreme poverty.

Academics

As per section 23.1 of AIIMS Act, all Medical, Dental, Nursing and other degrees approved by Academic Committee of the Institute are recognised by respective councils and acts. The courses offered by the institute are:

Medical facilities

M.B.B.S.

Until 2016, AIIMS accepted 72 Indian students, of which 37 belong to general category, 19 belong to Other Backward Classes (OBC), 11 belong to Scheduled Castes (S.C.) and 5 belong to Scheduled Tribes (S.T.) based on the results of an all-India entrance examination for its undergraduate M.B.B.S program. The number of students who take the entrance exam every year varies from 80,000 to 100,000. The acceptance rate for admission to the undergraduate course (medical school) is thus 72/90000 i.e. 0.0008%. From 2017, 107 students would be accepted. One international student (nominated by Government of India from SAARC nations) completes the class size of 73. AIIMS also specialises in paramedical and basic science training for its undergraduates. AIIMS is one of the few institutions where the faculty-student ratio is much better than the norm.

Bachelor of Optometry

This course is of 4 year (3 year academic and 1-year internship) duration, and is aimed at enabling the students to achieve general understanding of Human Biology and in-depth knowledge of medical science related to basic Ophthalmic science, viz., Ocular Anatomy, Ocular Physiology, Ocular Biochemistry, Ocular Pathology, Ocular Microbiology and Ocular Pharmacology, as well as clinical Ophthalmology, viz., Physiological Optics, Orthoptics, Investigative Ophthalmology, Low Vision Aids, Contact Lenses. The objectives of the course are:

The teaching exercises include lectures, seminars, demonstrations and postings in OPDs, operation theatres, mobile eye camps and various investigative labs. Admission to this course is done yearly and about 19 students are admitted. Admission based on the results of an all-India entrance examination conduct by AIIMS itself for its undergraduate Optometry program. The number of students who take the entrance exam every year varies from 30,000 to 50,000. The acceptance rate for admission to the undergraduate course is thus 19/40000 i.e. 0.04%

Post-graduate courses

There are about forty-two speciality post-graduate courses conducted at AIIMS. The entry is through a nationwide competitive examination,AIIMS PG, held every six months. Each year nearly 50 thousand medical graduates and 25 thousand dental graduates across the country compete for the limited number of positions, approximately, <1% of the candidates are admitted through the process- making it one of the most difficult tests. These courses are highly coveted by the medical graduates across the country because of the institution's excellent medical services, exposure to unusual and referred cases and excellent opportunities for research. The Institute announced that the test would be conducted in both online and paper-and-pen modes from May 2013 onwards. The AIIMS PG 2017 is scheduled to be held on 13 Nov 2016.

Integrating clinics and research

AIIMS was originally built as a Superspeciality tertiary care (refers to India's three-tier health system with Primary clinics, which refer cases to secondary district level hospitals, which in turn refer cases to regional tertiary hospitals) centre with primary emphasis on research and specialised training facilities. MBBS is the basic medical course, the same as medical school. This is followed by specialisation in General Surgery, General Internal Medicine, Pediatrics and other fields. Superspecialities are those healthcare fields whose practitioners need specialised certification after completing their postgraduations, examples being cardiothoracic and vascular surgery, rheumatology, Neurology, Pediatric Neurology etc. There are at least 45 superspecialities at AIIMS. Having clinical superspecialities in the same campus as its major research facilities makes AIIMS optimally suited for nurturing best quality translational research, which can translate into clinically useful end products, in India. AIIMS publishes The National Medical Journal of India, among India's most prestigious clinical journals. Its impact factor is the highest among Indian journals after the Indian journal of Medical Research (published by the Indian Council of Medical Research). Apart from this, several journals in medical sciences are edited by AIIMS faculty.

Medical services

As per the AIIMS Citizen's Charter, doctors & staff at AIIMS strive to provide comprehensive, high quality tertiary care services including speciality and super-specialty services to all without consideration of caste, creed, religion, sex, economic status or disability. However, there may be some deficiencies due to extreme patient load and finite resources. Acquiring newer equipment for investigation, research and patient care is expedited as it is not constrained by funds. From December 2011, the Institute stopped 36 key diagnostic tests due to controversy over the source of funding of these tests.

Speciality centres at AIIMS

There is a separate cardiothoracic and neurosciences centre (CNC) offering superspeciality level patient care, training and research in the respective fields.

Dr. Rajendra Prasad Centre for Ophthalmic Sciences is a 300-bed ophthalmic (eyes) speciality centre designated as the apex eye referral centre for India, and is the WHO collaborating centre for ophthalmic programs.

Recently Dr. BR Ambedkar Institute Rotary Cancer Hospital's construction has been completed. It specialises in medical, radiation and surgical oncology.

Jai Prakash Narayan Apex Trauma Centre is India's first full-fledged centre to treat victims of trauma. It is located about 1 km west from the main campus.

CDER, the Centre for Dental Education and Research, located adjacent to the Hostels, is AIIMS' newest speciality centre. The centre has been recently designated as WHO COLLABORATING CENTRE for Oral Health Promotion for a term of four years. The Govt of India, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has designated this Centre as National Centre for Excellence for implementation of National Oral Health Programme in the country. This centre provides technical support on Oral Health to the Govt and WHO. Despite having very few faculty members, this centre has been giving best research output per person in the whole country.

AIIMS also runs the National Drug Dependence Treatment Centre at Ghaziabad, one of Delhi's suburbs which is a WHO collaborating centre on substance abuse.

The Centre for Community Medicine at AIIMS maintains a teaching and treatment facility at Ballabgarh, which is a periurban area outside Delhi, it also provides comprehensive services to 84000 population. Faculty members from AIIMS are posted there by rotation.

Residential facilities

AIIMS is a residential university where the faculty members, staff and students live on either the main campus or one of the several campuses which form a part of the Institution. There are six hostels for male undergraduate students (Hostel No.1-6) and a single hostel available for female undergraduate students (Hostel 10). These seven hostels together can accommodate 400 students. For Post-graduate students, there are two hostels available for the men students and married couples(Hostel No.7-8) and a single hostel for the women students(Hostel No.9). Additional hostels for Nursing students and Post-graduate students are available at a facility in the Masjid Moth area, situated near to the main AIIMS campus. Hostels for MBBS/ MD / nursing students are also located at Ballabgarh, Dayalpur and Chainsa used during Ballabgarh posting.

Undergraduate Student life and academics

Life in AIIMS is a unique experience. Attendance was not made compulsory until a few years ago, with students being given full liberty to organize their own study patterns. In comparison to other medical colleges, the students enjoy a greater degree of autonomy academically and in extra-curricular programs, as well as several liberties in their hostels. The student culture at AIIMS places a greater emphasis on participating in research activities, under the professors at AIIMS or elsewhere, from undergraduate years.

The limitation of class size to just 73(MBBS)+10(MTR)+19(OPH) per year ensures a close-knit student community of just about 400 people. The student body is predominantly male, with men forming approximately 80% of every batch. This is in contrast to the situation with most other medical colleges, where women are represented in larger numbers. Hostel life centers on the Quadrangle in the Gents' hostel, where most students can be seen lounging or playing basketball and soccer.

AIIMS has a cosmopolitan student body, owing to its location in the national capital, as well as its countrywide reputation. Students from Malaysia, Indonesia, Nepal, Bhutan, Afghanistan, Mauritius and other nations add some of their own flavour. Exchange students from several Indian and international medical schools also mix with the existing crowd. The cosmopolitan crowd enables hearty celebration of a variety of Indian cultural festivities. The students are represented by the AIIMS Students' Union, headed by an executive committee that is elected every year from students of 6th semester.

Students of AIIMS involve themselves in extra-academic movements, including Pulse, the annual, inter-college festival hosted by AIIMS. Pulse is easily India's largest medical fest, with daily attendance ranging from 15000 to 45000. A large, well-equipped students' gym, swimming pool and courts for tennis, basketball, volleyball, squash and soccer provide ample recreational opportunities.

The hostel also houses a library and the students' body frequently hosts literary games, dance classes and arranges coaching for sports. The students annually host Infest, a scaled down version of Pulse with only internal participation, a unique chance for the students to organize and themselves participate in the activities otherwise conducted in Pulse.

Achievements

Institutional quota

Prior to Supreme court judgment of 25 August 2001 and changes in institutional quota, AIIMS was criticised for the way 33% of Post Graduation Seats were reserved for those who complete their MBBS in AIIMS. This has been rectified and now admissions to the post-graduate courses at AIIMS are much sought after from medical graduates throughout the country. There is now a curtain on the controversy for the present, since the Supreme Court judgment has in effect clearly defined the administrative intricacies and application of rules.

The honourable Supreme Court of India, stated that reserving 33 per cent seats for institutional candidates was in effect 100 per cent reservation for subjects, which was declared ultra vires the Constitution, and, hence, was struck down.

The quota has been quashed by the Supreme Court as per its Judgment in the year 2001.

Reservation policy for OBC and related controversies

Anbumoni Ramadoss was prime supporter of the new reservation policy that mandated 27% of seats to so-called "Other Backward Classes (OBC)" in all central government institutions. He ensured that P. Venugopal, an eminent heart surgeon and head of AIIMS, be removed in favor of T. D. Dogra. The conflict between P. Venugopal and Anbumani Ramadoss started as a personality conflict, later politicised as a conflict on reservation issue. P. Venugopal was reinstated by supreme court for an interim period of one month before his retirement. AIIMS students joined in the nationwide protests in May 2006. During the strike all medical services were suspended, but parallel OPDs were initiated after the strike had been going on for some time. The strike continued till 31 May when the doctors called off their strike after a Supreme Court of India decision.

2006 controversy over AIIMS' autonomy

AIIMS doctors again went on a flash strike in June–July 2006 over the issue of increasing political interference in the institution by the Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss. The doctors decided to go on strike following the controversial sacking of P. Venugopal, the former director of AIIMS and appointing Prof. T D Dogra the senior most professor as Director. Venugopal challenged his sacking in the courts, and the strike ended following the Delhi High Court's 7 July 2006 decision staying Venugopal's sacking . However, Ramadoss filed an appeal the same day in the Supreme Court of India against the stay of the removal of the AIIMS Director. On 25 July, the government offered to withdraw its order sacking Venugopal but would bring charges against him before a single-bench court. During this controversy, lack of treatment caused the death of some AIIMS patients.

Directors of the AIIMS Delhi

Notable faculty and alumni

Recipients of Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award for medical research

Several present and former faculty members from AIIMS have won the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology. Given by the CSIR, they are among India's most prestigious research awards.

New AIIMS

Six new AIIMS have been functional since 2012.