Medical Officer Government Jobs in India: Eligibility and Career Options

Medical officer is a term that is generally assigned to a medical practitioner in the armed forces but with increasing population and spreading diseases medical officers are also used in local medical camps.

In India especially with ever growing population and new types of diseases the need of medical camps to treat those who cannot afford good medical care is also increasing. These medical camps are to be managed and headed by medical officers.

Know How to build Career as Medical Officer – Take Career Counselling

Medical officers is not a much chosen career because many individuals with medical degree seek a high paying private jobs, and also this government job is not as glamorous as working at a private hospital.

Eligibility

• A candidate applying for a post of government medical officer should pass UPSC Combined Medical Service Examination.
• To be qualified and to apply for UPSC Combined Medical Service Examination the candidate must have passed with at least 50 % marks in his/ her Bachelor of Medicine or Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) degree.
• The age of the candidate writing the UPSC Combined Medical Service Examination must be above 21 years and below 32 years.

Career options

• Having a Bachelor of Medicine or Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) degree opens various job opportunities for you both government and private.
• Private sectors offer many jobs for medical officers with good salary but these jobs are not stable and will be gone with a change in the economy.
• Whereas Government jobs for medical officers may not be so high paying but the job is stable with many additional profits like living quarters, pension after retirement and many more.

In recent times, India has become one of the most preferred countries for medical tourism. Considering the low rate and highly skilled medical professionals, people from other countries visit India to fulfill their medical needs. Hence the medical sector needs more doctors and medical officers. The Indian government has also increased the number of government hospitals, so the number of medical officers’ vacancies may increase shortly. So demand is high for the medical officers in India. Those seeking career in the field can now take career counselling for medical jobs, where they learn about the possibilities of medical government officers and scope. Career growth is good in the public health center is as good as it is in the private sector.

The jobs available for medical officers in the Indian Government are
– Researcher:

• Researchers are in great demand for finding medicines for the ever emerging diseases.
• In government institutes like Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) and many others there are regular openings for medical officers, nurses etc. Job like these requires for the candidate to be patient and a good observer.
• The salary is quite good but still not as much as you would get in a private research centre.
  For applying for researcher jobs there are online portals where you can fill the form and submit making it very easy.

– Clinics or Hospitals:

• Government clinics or hospitals are very popular among the population that cannot afford to get treated in a private hospital.
• This work has no fixed timings and may take up a lot of your time in case there is a breakout of diseases.

– Camp doctor:

• With the increasing population the need of medical camps has also increased. The medical officer is to set up a camp and do a check-up of the candidates that enter the camp.
• This is quite a high demand job that may even require you to travel to the area where the camp is to be set up.
• The salary is good enough but the traveling will make you reconsider the job.

– Teacher:

• Teaching in government medical universities is a decent paying job with many benefits like transportation, housing, pension etc.

– Doctor in the Indian Navy or Army

Government doctors are among the highest-paid government employees. Depending on the department, the doctors get various other benefits like if a doctor is working in the railway department, then his journeys from trains will be free of cost. On deputation in big cities, doctors can spend their life without any transfer. The career growth of government doctors depends on their experience. All the departments with the medical section give the doctors promotions based on the time they have spent with the department.

• Opportunity to practice military medicine.
• Look after the health military personnel during both peace and war.

These are just a few government jobs for medical officers there are many more openings in the military, navy etc.

The Indian Navy and Army medical services are delivered through a network of hospitals across the nation. There are various options available for medical aspirants, they can specialize in fields like radiography, blood transfusion, physiotherapy, lab assistant, and nursing etc.

Advantages of Career as a Medical Officer and Growth Graph

Government doctors are among the highest-paid government employees. Depending on the department, the doctors get various other benefits like if a doctor is working in the railway department, then his journeys from trains will be free of cost. On deputation in big cities, doctors can spend their life without any transfer. The career growth of government doctors depends on their experience. All the departments with the medical section give the doctors promotions based on the time they have spent with the department.

Wrap Up

Those who are seeking a career in Indian Army and Navy as a medical officer, must know that postgraduate courses are conducted at Pune-based Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC). Also, courses are offered by several Armed Forces teaching hospitals located across the country. Recruitment to the medical posts are done through Short Service Commission (SSC) and Permanent Commission (PC), so keep an eye on notifications and apply for the positions before deadline.
Good Luck!