NIMHANS, Bangalore Comparison

Here is the routine of a Neurosurgery resident at NIMHANS.

The department is subdivided into 6 units, each of which is headed by an internationally acclaimed faculty member. The day of a resident starts at around 6 AM with a routine assessment of patients in all the wards under one’s respective unit for the month. 

This is followed by academics which start at 8 AM. It runs for 1-1 ½ hours. During this time, the cases posted for surgery are presented by senior residents. These are then discussed among faculty members and residents to reach a decision for the optimal treatment of that case.

After this, the senior residents head to the OT complex, and junior residents present rounds to the faculty. Decisions on further treatment/discharge are made during the rounds.

Junior residents then perform ward procedures like External Ventricular Drain Insertion, Lumbar drains, Lumbar Punctures, Shunt Taps, Fontanelle Tap, Tracheostomies, etc. under supervision. This is followed by evening rounds by the faculty/ senior residents. After these, any leftover work is completed. The evening ends with a post-op call to the respective consultant, and the duty ends at 9 PM when the night duty resident takes over. 

The OPD for a particular unit is held on a fixed day. It is also a casualty call day for the unit. Life as a neurosurgery resident is so busy that even having meals is like a luxury. 

NIMHANS will train you to practice evidence-based medicine and keep updated with all the recent developments in your field. It is one of the best places in India to practice Neurosurgery residency. 

Usually, the stipend paid to a PhD in Clinical Psychology student (external category) at MIMHANS is around INR 31,000 for the first two years and INR 35,000 for the remaining 3 years.

The only drawback is that students who have already done an MPhil will get only an institute fellowship for 3 years and they will be considered as SRFs with a salary of INR 28,000. These students get to stay in the hostel by paying a monthly rent of INR 250 for institute fellows and an HRA amount for external fellows.

The hostel facilities are excellent for the PG students in medical and surgical branches. Many of my friends in AIIMS and PGI have visited NIMHANS and claimed its hostel facilities to be better than their hostels. The hostels are well-maintained and hygiene is given utmost importance. Additionally, there are family rooms available on the basis of seniority.

However, the non-medical trainees don’t get very good hostel facilities as their buildings are old and retarded. Most of the old academic buildings have been transformed into hostels for non-medical trainees so you should keep your expectations low if you are one.