A sneak peek into the curriculum on disaster management medicine in India for health professionals: A mixed-methods approach

INTRODUCTION: India being a disaster-prone country necessitates us to be able to act proactively for any sort of preparedness and prevention. This necessitates a curriculum which can bring all the aspects related to disaster under one umbrella and thus impart training. AIM: The aim of the study was to assess the responses of students about the importance of disaster management (DM) in their MBBS course, take up suggestions about the important inclusions to be made in their curriculum, and get an insight of the higher education and research of DM domain in the Indian context. METHODOLOGY: A cross-sectional study with a batch of 100 MBBS students purposively sampled were part of the questionnaire. Besides, a thorough Internet search for institutes providing training on DM was done, and relevant details were noted down. Later on, the students were given guest lectures and demonstrations by certified trainers and experts along with a know-how of where to go for getting a hands-on training and whom to respond to. RESULTS: Seventy-two percent of the students felt the portion of DM being taught to them to be insufficient, and 95% never got any training or demonstration for DM although 22% felt that it is not so important for them as a doctor. Only 23% of them knew about any sort of DM courses or certifications in India, and almost 16% of the students were confident enough to tackle any incidence of public health emergency. CONCLUSION: Making an earlier start will impart seriousness and accountability in the mindset of budding physicians.