What a DM means on a doctor's profile
The DM is the super-speciality degree of the medical specialities: cardiology, neurology, nephrology, gastroenterology, endocrinology and the rest.
The DM is the third tier of medical training in India: three more years after an MD or DNB, entered through NEET-SS, in a super-speciality — cardiology, neurology, nephrology, gastroenterology, endocrinology, medical oncology, neonatology, pulmonary medicine and others. A cardiologist, in the sense the register uses, is a doctor with a DM (Cardiology) or its DrNB equivalent; a physician with an interest in the heart is not. A few institutions run direct six-year courses after the MBBS that award the same degree.
Because the DM is the qualification that separates a specialist from a super-specialist, it is the one a patient with a serious diagnosis should look for and the one most worth verifying. On this site the DM is recorded on cardiology, neurology, nephrology and gastroenterology profiles above all; the measured block below shows the branches and where their holders practise, and each profile says whether the qualification has been checked against the awarding university.
How to check whether a doctor holds a DM
- Read the register entryA doctor's record on the Indian Medical Register names the qualification the state medical council recorded at registration, and further qualifications where the doctor has had them added. If the doctor says they hold a DM and the register shows only the primary degree, the DM has not been registered — which is common and not by itself a warning, but it does mean the register cannot confirm it.
- Check the college was recognised for the courseThe NMC's College and Course Search lists which institutions are recognised for which courses. a DM from a college not recognised for it on the year in question is a qualification the NMC does not recognise, whatever the certificate says.
- Ask the awarding body when it mattersUniversities verify degrees on request, usually for a fee; a hospital credentialing a doctor does this, and a patient can ask whether it has been done. On this site a qualification is marked verified only when it has been checked against the awarding body and the date is shown; otherwise it is marked as supplied.
429 doctors record a DM
None of them has the qualification checked against the awarding body yet. All are recorded as supplied. Counts are read from the live database and refresh hourly.
Branches as written on profiles
| Branch | Doctors |
|---|---|
| Cardiology | 106 |
| Neurology | 78 |
| Nephrology | 28 |
| Gastroenterology | 27 |
| Endocrinology | 15 |
| Oncology | 14 |
| Gastro | 9 |
| Medical Oncology | 8 |
Specialities they practise
- Cardiologists · 144
- Neurologists · 97
- Gastroenterologists · 50
- Nephrologists · 32
- Medical oncologists · 30
- Endocrinologists · 19
Where they practise
Branches with their own page
- DM (Cardiology) — DM in Cardiology
- DM (Neurology) — DM in Neurology
- DM (Nephrology) — DM in Nephrology
- DM (Gastroenterology) — DM in Gastroenterology
Questions people ask
- Is a DM a recognised qualification in India?
- Yes, when awarded by an institution recognised for it. The National Medical Commission maintains the list of recognised qualifications and of the institutions permitted to award each; a DM from a college that was not recognised for the course in that year is not a recognised qualification, and a registering body can refuse to enter it on the register.
- Is a DM a doctorate like a PhD?
- No. It is a clinical super-speciality degree — three years of supervised patient care and examination in one field. A PhD is a research degree. The two are sometimes confused because DM stands for "Doctorate of Medicine".
Every profile lists its qualifications as supplied and says which of them have been checked against the awarding body and when. Where none has, the profile says so.
General information about medical qualifications in India, checked against the sources listed on 25 Sep 2026. Not advice about your situation. Errors can be reported through the corrections process.