×
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

Delhi govt seeks NABH accreditation for hospitals

Last Updated 14 February 2012, 20:16 IST

The Delhi Government is planning to improve services in its hospitals to be eligible for the much sought after quality tag from National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and Healthcare Providers. This is part of Delhi’s 12th Five Year Plan proposal submitted to the Centre.

“We want all our hospitals which have 200 beds and more to get accreditation from NABH. The funds will be sought under the coming five year plan,” said Anshu Prakash, principal secretary (health and family welfare), Government of Delhi.

He said regular staff is the biggest issue that has to be sorted out in Delhi Government’s hospitals. “There is a long drawn channel for recruitment. We are looking into the matter,” he said.

The proposal comes on the heels of four Delhi Government institutes receiving NABH accreditation, the latest being the Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences (IHBAS). Curiously, all four institutes provide specialised services. None of the general or multi-speciality hospitals of the government so far have the accreditation.

“IHBAS, Maulana Azad Institute of Dental Sciences (MAIDS), Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences (ILBS) and Chacha Nehru Bal Chikitsalaya (CNBC) have the accreditation. Other than CNBC, all are autonomous institutes and thus, could overcome the bottlenecks. Also, their heads took specific initiatives on their own to improve requisite services. We are doing the same for the other hospitals,” said Prakash.

The 10 chapters of NABH guidelines have 514 criteria. Each criterion has 10 marks and a hospital scores 10, 5 or 0 marks based on the quality of service. A hospital scoring 70 per cent is considered for the accreditation. In addition to this score, the hospital has to have a no objection certificate from the fire department and certifications from agencies like Atomic Energy Regulatory Board.

“Other than meeting our criteria, the hospitals need to follow law of the land. Only then a healthcare institute is given accreditation by us,” said Dr Girdhar J Gyani, secretary general, Quality Council of India and chief executive officer, NABH.

He said the specialised institutes do not have to meet all the criteria set for a general or multi-speciality hospital, but the common criteria like education qualification of medical and paramedical staff and quality of sterilisation of surgical instruments has to be met by all. The accreditation is valid for three years with a midterm check after 18 months.

“We are increasingly finding the standards going low in mid-term checks. We are planning surprise visits to accredited hospitals now to ensure quality assurance,” said Dr Gyani.

IHBAS had been working for four years to receive the NABH accreditation.

“Many private hospitals have NABH accreditation. But quality assurance in government institutes and hospitals is important because it shows that good healthcare is not limited to only the rich, but also to the poor,” said Dr Nimesh G Desai, director, IHBAS.

“People still consider IHBAS as a mental hospital. I hope now the image will change and it will be considered as a brain and mind institute,” said Dr Desai.

PPP model in 20 hospitals

State health minister A K Walia on Tuesday said the state government is going to implement a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model to ensure availability of affordable, timely and advanced diagnostic facilities in its 20 hospitals located in various parts of the city. “The PPP Model is being geared to cater to the needs of the patients belonging to all economic strata with provision for free treatment of BPL patients.

The proposed pricing is pegged to Central Government Health Services rate, which will be further discounted through competition in bidding process,” said Walia.

ADVERTISEMENT
(Published 14 February 2012, 20:16 IST)

Follow us on

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT