Shriraam Mahadevan1, Pavanasam Velayutham2. 1. Department of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Sri Ramachandra Medical College, Porur, Chennai, India. 2. Department of Endocrinology, Kovai Medical Centre and Hospital, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India.
Sir,As alumni of PGIMER Chandigarh, we read with great interest the article by Das et al.[1] in the Arjuna's recollections section of the journal.We were quite nostalgic and wished to place on record that we share almost all of the experiences which the authors have mentioned. There is very little doubt that the academic environment at PGIMER is one of the best in the world. Here, we would like to share our thoughts on the nonacademic facets of PGI training so that future doctors coming out of this great institution (as well as other top institutions in our country) are better prepared to face the challenges of the real world.During PGI training, the candidate is usually in a closely knit protective environment with almost the whole time spent on clinical, academic, or research work. It is well known that after completion of the program, not everybody would continue to be in a similar academic institute or join government hospitals and pursue a research- oriented endocrine career. In fact, most of the candidates seek jobs in private sector, especially in corporate hospitals, and few of them would have a hospital/clinic set up of their own. I felt that during the training program, few sessions of discussion by experts on options available after leaving the institute and exposure to such set up may instill more confidence in the candidates as well as provide first-hand information on the “real” world outside the institute.Again, some perspective or brief course on financial and human resource management would also help in providing and equipping the candidates holistically for a nonPGI-like set up. Above all, orientation and practical sessions on balancing family with academic life within and outside the institute need to be reiterated. The alumni meeting and exchange programs with other institutes (including private institutes)may be very helpful in this regard.