NEW DELHI: An ‘MD’ title after a doctor’s name usually signals a postgraduate medical qualification in India. But for some foreign medical graduates, MD (Physician) is the title of their primary medical degree.This difference has triggered a dispute over professional titles, with doctors warning that patients could be misled and foreign medical graduates arguing their qualifications are officially recognised.Dr Dhruv Chauhan, national spokesperson for Junior Doctors’ Network (JDN) of Indian Medical Association, flagged the issue in a post on X, alleging some doctors misuse the ‘MD’ degree title awarded in foreign countries, where it may denote a primary medical qualification equivalent to MBBS in India.He said that using it in professional titles and online biographies could mislead patients and even other doctors, and warned of possible legal consequences. He also advised doctors against such representations.Dr MK Ramesh, president of NMC’s Medical Assessment and Rating Board told TOI the issue arises from differences in medical qualification nomenclature across countries. In some countries, the basic medical qualification is called an MD, whereas in India it is MBBS.
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This distinction needs to be clearly recognised. Some measures have already been taken to address the issue, and further steps will be pursued.A senior doctor said the issue had persisted for nearly a decade despite repeated representations to regulators. “Patients cannot be expected to know the difference,” he said.All FMGs Association has defended the use of the title “MD Physician”, arguing the qualification is recognised as equivalent to MBBS in India and that graduates should not be branded fraudulent merely for mentioning the degree awarded by their foreign universities.
