NATIONAL BOARD OF EXAMINATIONS

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NATIONAL BOARD OF EXAMINATIONS

• ANBAI MEETING
• 3rd AUGUST,BANGALORE

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FEES
Discussion point a b

• NBE constituted a committee under the
  chairpersonship of Dr. R.N. Salhan.
• The committee consulted various stakeholders who
  are involved and would be affected by the
  revision of fees for DNB candidates.
• The committee has given its report for revision
  of fee rules and fee schedule guidelines for
  the DNB candidates.
• The committee has recommended the revision of
  fees to Rs, 100,000 and has also prescribed a
  yearly breakup of fees for the candidates to
  prevent any immediate monetary burden on them and
  their families.

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FEES

• The committee has also specified that the fee
  shall be paid by the candidate only through
  Demand Draft/Cheque/electronic transfer and under
  no circumstances by cash.
• The committee has also made recommendations on
  the stipend for DNB candidates, which either be
  as mentioned below or as per State Government
  Norms, whichever is higher.

For year 1 Rs. 22000/-
For year 2 Rs. 23500/-
For year 3 Rs.25000/-
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FEES

• For Post Diploma candidates, the stipend shall be
  as follows

Year 1 Equivalent to DNB year 2 stipend
Year 2 Equivalent to DNB year 3 stipend
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II. STUDENT RELATED ISSUES

• National Board of examinations has not prescribed
  in any of its guidelines, any specific number of
  hours for DNB students for performance of
  clinical/ hospital duties.
• The candidates are required to be on duty and
  discharge clinical and hospital work as may be
  assigned by the hospital/ institution
  administration.
• It is not possible to announce the results of DNB
  examinations institute wise.
• However results are announced specialty wise both
  at NBE website and at NBE Notice Board as well as
  in NBE Annual Report.

• Discussion Point 1. Duty Hours

Discussion Point 2. Announcement of Results of
the DNB examinations
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II. STUDENT RELATED ISSUES

• The topic of thesis details of proposed thesis
  guide are not asked immediately after joining of
  candidates.
• Instead the same is required to be filled in the
  form for registration with NBE which can be
  submitted up to 30 days of joining the DNB
  training.
• Keeping in view of 90 days time to submit thesis
  protocol, 30 days time is adequate enough to
  identify possible research area and thesis guide.
  
• The same has been quoted in the allotment letter,
  registration form and registration guidelines
  stated in the handbook for counseling.

• Discussion Point 3. Thesis Topic Guide

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II. STUDENT RELATED ISSUES
DOCUMENTS TO BE SUBMITTED TO NBE
At the Time of Counseling
-Rank Letter -DNB CET Result Certificate -MBBS
Degree certificate/ Provisional Pass Certificate
of MBBS -Permanent Registration certificate
issued by MCI/State Medical Council for
registration of MBBS qualification. -Proof of
MBBS Qualification being recognized as per IMC
Act/ Central Government. -Internship Completion
Certificate -Mark sheets of all MBBS
Professional Examinations. -Matriculation/High
School/Higher Secondary Certificate as a proof
of Date of Birth. -SC/ST/PWD/OBC certificate
issued by competent authority, if
applicable. -Caste certificate must be issued by
competent authority. -Any document confirming
the name of the institution/medical college
from where the MBBS qualification was
pursued. -Proof of identity -Any other relevant
document.
30 Days
-Duly filled Application Form Registration as
DNB Trainee -Bank Chalaan -Annexure A
90 Days
Thesis Protocol Submission
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II. STUDENT RELATED ISSUES

• National board of Examinations shall not
  ordinarily interfere in any dispute which is a
  work place dispute or an issue involving the
  accredited institute or the candidate.
• However in rare or exceptional cases NBE may
  consider the issue for necessary action or
  adjudication.

Discussion Point 4 5 Misconduct of Students
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III. THESIS PROTOCOL
Discussion Point 1. Guidelines regarding the
submission of thesis protocol

• The guidelines for writing and submission of
  thesis and thesis protocol are already available
  on National Board of Examinations website.
  Moreover accreditation is granted to the
  department having a PG teacher who is well
  experienced with guiding the student about how to
  write a thesis protocol and thesis.
• It is far from understanding how candidates are
  finding it difficult to write thesis and protocol
  under guidance of well trained PG teachers who
  have wide teaching experience.
• Based on your request, we shall be sending a
  compendium of guidelines to all DNB coordinators
  soon
• Already in Place

• Discussion Point 2. Request of introduction of a
  system of e- acknowledgement of thesis

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III. THESIS PROTOCOL

• In the year 2012-13, a total of 3657 number of
  thesis was received at the NBE office for
  assessment of which 100 percent have been
  processed.
• 67.8 (2481) have been accepted communication
  has already been issued to the concerned
  candidates, 12 (438) have been advised
  modification concerned candidates have been
  communicated to submit thesis after necessary
  modifications and 20.2 (739) of thesis are still
  under assessment.
• It is to mention here that 13 candidates have not
  submitted their modified thesis even more than 1
  year after communication was issued though they
  were given 6 weeks time to modify the thesis as
  advised.
• 6 theses were reported lost during transit from
  concerned assessor to NBE. For administrative
  reasons, these candidates have been advised to
  resubmit a copy of their thesis to NBE.

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III. THESIS PROTOCOL

• An alarming data has come out of the analysis
  done by NBE that more than 69.6 (689) of June
  2013 exam going candidates have not submitted
  their thesis for assessment to NBE in time.
• For June 13 examination going candidates, the
  last date to submit thesis was 31st of December
  2012, only 30.4 (301) of total expected thesis
  were received at NBE office.
• To extend maximum benefits to the candidates, the
  cutoff date to submit thesis was extended twice.
  Even after extended cutoff date, 110 candidates
  failed to submit their thesis to NBE.
• The institutions are requested to abide by the
  timelines for thesis submission which are well
  notified on NBE website as well as information
  bulletins published by NBE time to time.

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III. THESIS PROTOCOL

• In circumstances where theses are submitted to
  NBE irregularly out of the schedule, it becomes
  very difficult to ensure completion of assessment
  process by the time candidate gets his/her DNB
  final exam result. This results into results/PPC
  getting withheld due to lack of thesis
  acceptance.
• In view of a number of thesis being received with
  not an expected quality of research work, NBE has
  taken a step forward to get all thesis protocols
  assessed centrally and to advise the candidates
  to modify their proposed research work
  accordingly.
• This exercise was not satisfactorily delivered
  by the institutional ethical/research committees.

Discussion Point 3. The review and acceptance
of the thesis protocol by NBE presently is taking
a long time
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III. THESIS PROTOCOL

• Candidates are required to furnish the thesis
  protocols to NBE within 90 days of their joining
  DNB training. However, its a rarity to see a
  protocol being submitted in time.
• Institutions are forwarding protocols to NBE for
  assessment as late as the time when thesis
  submission cutoff date has been over/about to be
  over. In such circumstances, it is not possible
  to offer assessment remarks on such protocols.
• In 2012-2013, around 1796 protocols were received
  in NBE office of which around 75 have been
  processed and outcome has been communicated to
  the candidates. Rests of the protocols are under
  assessment or can not be assessed as the deadline
  for thesis submission is already over/shortly
  approaching.
• 95 out of 369 candidates who have been registered
  with NBE for DNB training in year 2013 have not
  submitted their thesis protocols despite 90 days
  timeline being over and each of them being
  reminded through individual telephonic calls.

IV. ASSESSMENT FOR ACCREDITATION AND SCHEDULE
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III. THESIS PROTOCOL

• So far there is no administrative penalty being
  imposed on erring candidates/ institutions who
  fail to submit thesis protocol in time.
  Institutions are requested to encourage the
  candidates to submit thesis protocols to NBE well
  in time so as the outcome can be communicated in
  a timely manner.

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IV. ASSESSMENT FOR ACCREDITATION AND SCHEDULE

• NBE has defined and formulated a clear set of
  guidelines and criteria regarding inspection of
  hospitals/institutes. A calendar for
  accreditation of hospitals (both fresh and
  renewal) is a process of one year and NBE ensures
  that the same is maintained.
• A case wherein inspection is delayed beyond
  prescribed schedule is due to compliance being
  awaited from the hospital regarding deficiencies
  noted in the application submitted.
• The calendar for accreditation of hospitals is as
  follows

Discussion point 1. Schedule of Inspection
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IV. ASSESSMENT FOR ACCREDITATION AND SCHEDULE
Activity Time Frame
Sale of forms All around the year
Receiving of completed application 31st Jan
Scrutiny of Applications by NBE Feb-Mar
Appointment of inspectors, completion of inspection and receipt of reports 1st Apr- 15th June
Scrutiny of reports to be completed by 31st July
Accreditation Committee, Proceedings and Approval by NBE Aug/Sep
Communication of deficiency, acceptance of reports, etc Aug-Sep
Signing of Agreements with institutes/hospitals Oct
Consideration of cases with compliance of deficiencies Oct
Signing of Agreement Oct/ Nov
Admission Process Nov-Dec
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IV. ASSESSMENT FOR ACCREDITATION AND SCHEDULE
APPLICATION
SCRUTINY
NO DEFICIENCY
DEFICIENT
RECIEVED
REPORT RECEIVED
SEEK COMPLIANCE
SCRUTINY
NO DEFICIENCY
NO DEFICIENCY
SEEK COMPLIANCE
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IV. ASSESSMENT FOR ACCREDITATION AND SCHEDULE

• The purpose of local appraiser is to further
  improve the quality of training, assess the
  training infrastructure for the DNB candidates
  and also assist the local institutions to develop
  in to a center of academic excellence.
• National Board appoints Local experts/appraisers
  from hospitals in the vicinity of the concerned
  Hospital/Medical Institute.
• National Board is conducting appraisal of all the
  accredited Hospitals/Medical Institutes on an
  annual basis. The appraisal is done of the
  Hospitals/Medical Institutions all over India.
• The feedback of the shortcomings observed and
  suggestions for further improvement is
  communicated to the concerned hospital/medical
  institute and each DNB trainee for further
  improvement.
• The concerned Hospital/Medical Institute bears
  the remuneration expenses for the appointed local
  expert/appraiser

Discussion point 2 Frequency Schedule of
External Appraisal
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IV. ASSESSMENT FOR ACCREDITATION AND SCHEDULE

• NBE shall make all possible efforts that the
  academic session of candidates registered through
  the second phase of counseling in August 2013 is
  not disturbed.
• The candidates shall be able to undertake
  December 2015 DNB Final Examinations.
• However they will be required to complete their
  full training at their respective hospitals/
  institutes as per NBE guidelines and complete
  their training by mid 2016.
• There is no kind of preference given by NBE to
  any particular state/ city for selection of
  professors and examiners for evaluation of theory
  papers or practical examinations.
• NBE also ensures that most of the examiners
  appointed are from DNB institutes all over the
  country.

Discussion point 3 Completion of training for
Jan 2013 Session
IV. ASSESSMENT FOR ACCREDITATION AND SCHEDULE
Discussion point 4 Appointment of Examiners
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IV. ASSESSMENT FOR ACCREDITATION AND SCHEDULE

• Last year for the session of December 2012,
  approximately 800 examiners and assessors were
  appointed by NBE for theory and practical
  examinations from all over the country. Out of
  all the examiners appointed, around 70 of them
  were from various DNB institutes accredited with
  the NBE.
• In December 2012, out of the total 165 assessors
  appointed for theory papers evaluation, 111 of
  them were from DNB institutes all over the
  country.
• In practical examinations also, around 650
  assessors were appointed by NBE from various
  institutes all over the country with majority of
  them coming from various DNB institutes
  accredited with NBE.

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V. COMMUNICATION

• Each Department within NBE has a query handling
  unit as an integral part exclusively for the
  purpose of addressing specific queries from
  candidates and institutes.
• Apart from departmental divisions a Contact
  Center has been established for receiving and
  sending large volume of telephonic and email
  queries.
• Also please be apprised that NBE has mentioned in
  all its guidelines that an e mail query shall be
  addressed only if it is not anonymous and
  contains the name, postal address and contact
  number of the sender.
• An e mail containing vague or general queries
  seeking information already contained in the
  information bulletin shall not be entertained.
  Queries shall not be entertained from person
  claiming themselves to be representative,
  associate or officiates of the candidate/
  institute.
• Department wise data of e mail communication
  between the NBE and candidate for last 3 months
  is provided below

IV. ASSESSMENT FOR ACCREDITATION AND SCHEDULE
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V. COMMUNICATION
 Department E mail Address April May June Turn Around Time
Registration reg_at_natboard.edu.in 316 1445 1201 With in 24 hrs to 7 days depending upon the nature of the query  
Counseling counseling_at_natboard.edu.in 70 1217 281 With in 24 hrs to 7 days depending upon the nature of the query  
Thesis Protocol thesis_at_natboard.edu.in 127 147 135 With in 24 hrs to 7 days depending upon the nature of the query  
Final Section final_at_natboard.edu.in 1619 1024 1542 With in 24 hrs to 7 days depending upon the nature of the query  
MCQ Section cet_at_natboard.edu.in 194 283 398 With in 24 hrs to 7 days depending upon the nature of the query  
Accreditation accr_at_natboard.edu.in 224 410 253 With in 24 hrs to 7 days depending upon the nature of the query  
IV. ASSESSMENT FOR ACCREDITATION AND SCHEDULE

• Communication Protocol For Accreditation
• Average time duration between the assessment
  report being received and communication being
  issued is around 30 days.

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V. COMMUNICATION

• A reminder in advance regarding the expiry of
  accreditation is sent to all concerned
  Institutions/Hospitals.
• A schedule for submission of application seeking
  fresh/renewal of accreditation is communicated to
  each NBE accredited hospitals/institutions by
  post and by email as well as a public notice in
  this regard is also uploaded on the NBE official
  website.
• 100 applications received for seeking
  fresh/renewal of accreditation are acknowledged.
• Communication Details of Contact Center
• 1. Email Communications via feedback_at_natboard.edu.
  in
• The NBE contact centre receives emails
  directly from candidates seeking various
  information related to examination, thesis status
  etc. The contact centre sends the queries to the
  respective sections for the solutions and then
  reverts back to the candidate.

IV. ASSESSMENT FOR ACCREDITATION AND SCHEDULE
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V. COMMUNICATION
Departments Number of Emails (Approx) Turn Around Time for Response/Acknowledgement Turn Around Time for Solution/Answer
FINAL 160 2 Working Hours 48 Working Hours
FMGE 45 2 Working Hours 48 Working Hours
REGISTRATION COUNSELING 60 2 Working Hours 24 Working Hours
DEGREE CONVOCATION 15 2 Working Hours 48 Working Hours
THESIS 180 2 Working Hours 48 to 72 Working Hours
MISC./ FEEDBACK 100 2 Working Hours 48 Working Hours
IV. ASSESSMENT FOR ACCREDITATION AND SCHEDULE
It may vary as per the nature of the query
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V. COMMUNICATION

• 2. Telephonic Communication
• NBE Contact Center is functioning for both
  Inbound and Outbound calls. An Inbound Contact
  Center of NBE is operated by Candidate Care
  Executives (CCEs) to manage incoming quires from
  the candidates.
• Outbound Contact Center of NBE is operated for
  calling the candidates/ doctors/ hospitals etc
  for providing them the information regarding
  their thesis status, results, hospital
  accreditation, CME workshops and for taking their
  valuable feedback which is used for internal
  trainings and improvements.
• Service Level Percent The percentage of
  incoming calls that are answered by the Contact
  Center within a specified time period.

MONTH NO OF CALLS OFFERED NO. OF CALLS ANSWERED SERVICE LEVEL PERCENT
Apr-13 5287 5062 95.74
May-13 8947 8489 94.88
Jun-13 8716 8420 96.60
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V. COMMUNICATION

• Many appreciation e mails have been received by
  the Candidate Care Executives from time to time.
  Between April and June 2013, 91 such mails have
  been received from the candidates.
• Hence the assertion made is wrong and far from
  actual facts.

IV. ASSESSMENT FOR ACCREDITATION AND SCHEDULE
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VI. ACCREDITATION

• The statement made that timely inspections are
  not being conducted by NBE is completely baseless
  and vague allegation. In fact, NBE makes all
  possible efforts to ensure that timely inspection
  for hospitals/institutes are conducted so that
  accreditation can be granted to them as per
  prescribed schedule.
• Status of the Applications received for seeking
  Fresh/Renewal of Accreditation in the year 2012
• Out of these applications received, 150
  applications were submitted by the
  Hospitals/Institutions after the prescribed cut
  of date of which 90 were for even June-2012
  expiry.

Discussion Point a Renewal of Accreditation
Cases Application Received (2012) of Applications Processed (2012)
Fresh Cases 237 91
Renewal Cases 466 90
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VI. ACCREDITATION

• Communications to all concerned
  Institutions/Hospitals have already been issued.
• Processing of less than 5 of Renewal cases is
  still ongoing primarily due to non-submission of
  compliance by concerned Hospitals/Institutions
  for deficiencies observed in the application/by
  NBE appointed assessor.
• Processing of less than 4 of Fresh cases is
  still ongoing primarily due to non-submission of
  compliance by concerned Hospitals/Institutions
  for deficiencies observed in the application/by
  NBE appointed assessor.
• Please be apprised that the physical assessment
  is recommended only after NBE office has ensured
  that all necessary information is available in
  the application submitted by the
  institute/hospital. Assessment gets delayed if
  the compliance is not furnished or not furnished
  as per prescribed norms.

VI. ACCREDITATION
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VI. ACCREDITATION

• Status of the Applications received for seeking
  Fresh/Renewal of Accreditation in the year 2013
• A total of 604 applications (392 Renewal
  212 Fresh) seeking fresh/renewal of accreditation
  have been received in the current year. 100
  applications have been acknowledged and further
  processed. 80 compliance reports are still
  awaited at the end of Hospitals/Institutions
  despite repeated reminders.
• It is not possible for NBE to upload Assessment
  Form A B on NBE website as these forms are for
  restricted use by NBE appointed specialty
  assessor for NBE accreditation. Further, these
  forms if uploaded on the website are liable to
  abuse.

VI. ACCREDITATION
Discussion Point b Inspection for Reaccreditation
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VII. DNB EXAMINATIONS

• DNB Final Exit Examination is a highly structured
  examination which has been formulated keeping all
  the possibilities in mind. One single examiner or
  performance does not define the candidate as a
  whole.
• Infact having different assessors for evaluating
  the candidates helps in increasing validity and
  reliability of the candidate assessment. Hence
  making such a statement that a dislike by an
  examiner can affect the result of the candidate
  is beyond understanding. During an assessment of
  the answer sheets, the examiner is evaluating the
  answers of the candidate and not him.
• During objective assessment, NBE already has an
  itemized method of assessment in place which is
  followed by all the examiners.
• Hence the statement made that sub par performance
  in even one of the parts will effect the result
  of the candidate is a completely vague statement.

Discussion Point a
Discussion Point b
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VII. DNB EXAMINATIONS

• There has been no information or complaint from
  anyone of any such instance of candidates being
  humiliated by examiners from medical colleges.
• Students are well aware of the fact that they are
  free to contact NBE if they face any problem
  during their examination or at the institute
  during training.
• The statement made about the fact that the pass
  rates in practical examinations are extremely low
  is completely vague and away from the truth. In
  December 2012, a total of 1910 candidates passed
  the practical examinations with a an overall
  passing percentage of 67 .
• The passing percentage for practical examinations
  for all the subjects in the session of December
  2012 is given below

Discussion Point c
Discussion Point d
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VII. DNB EXAMINATIONS
Subject Passing Percentage
Anaesthesiology 65.61
Anatomy 90.00
Biochemistry 75.00
Cardio Thoracic Surgery 65.61
Cardiology 90.00
Dermatology Venereology 61.04
Endocrinology 77.78
Family Medicine 64.81
Forensic Medicine 100.00
Gastroenterology 68.00
General Medicine 40.93
General Surgery 44.04
Genito Urinary Surgery (Urology) 64.42
Health Administration Including Hospital Administration 42.86
Hematology 33.33
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VII. DNB EXAMINATIONS
Immunohematology Trans Fusion Medicine 100.00
Medical Oncology 100.00
Microbiology 63.64
Neonatology 60.00
Nephrology 76.67
Neuro Surgery 41.46
Neurology 82.35
Nuclear Medicine 58.82
Obstetrics And Gynecology 54.69
Ophthalmology 69.28
Orthopedic Surgery 46.58
Otorhinolaryngology 46.84
Paediatric Surgery Part Ii 72.73
Paediatrics 61.69
Pathology 77.78
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VII. DNB EXAMINATIONS
Peripheral Vascular Surgery 100.00
Pharmacology 81.82
Physical Medicine And Rehabilitation 100.00
Physiology 75.00
Plastic Surgery 43.75
Psychiatry 52.83
Radio Diagnosis 57.98
Radio Therapy 58.06
Respiratory Diseases 58.82
Rheumatology 50.00
Rural Surgery 83.33
Social And Preventive Medicine 75.00
Surgical Gastroenterology 64.58
Surgical Oncology 60.87
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VIII. DNB Curriculum for General Surgery

• The curriculum for General Surgery is uploaded on
  the website.

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