Dr KM Kalra, CEO, NABH informed that quality and patient safety should be seen as more than just a marketing strategy. In fact, it should be one of the basic tenets on healthcare delivery.
Giving an insightful keynote address on the third day of the first edition of the Healthcare Senate 2016, Dr Kalra informed that the healthcare industry is witnessing a paradigm shift and the patients are becoming more aware about their needs and rights. They, rightfully, seek and demand quality in hospitals and nursing homes. Hence, healthcare organisations should be willing to start the step-by-step journey towards quality improvement.
“There is a general myth that quality comes only at high cost. However, even at lower, affordable price s, quality can be given. But, in our country the main challenge is the scarcity of staff and lack of skill. Giving quality care in India because there is lack of documented evidence. For example; medical errors, hospital acquired disease are found in one out of ten patients globally. The number of deaths annually is more than one lakh in the US. But, in India we don’t have any data. The National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and Healthcare (NABH) has started collection of data from the accredited hospitals,” Dr Kalra said.
Key takeaways
- Assuring quality and patient safety should be a basic tenets of healthcare delivery
- There is a general myth that quality comes only with a cost, but even at lower, affordable prices, quality can be given.
- Accreditation stimulates a culture of safety in the healthcare space. It ensures safe use of high risk medication, reporting errors, risk assessment and good governance.
Throwing light on how NABH is assisting healthcare providers in assuring quality to patients, he said, “Accreditation is a tested tool to bring quality and safety, it helps in bringing about a positive transformation in healthcare. It is a trend followed globally to maintain standards in healthcare delivery. However, accreditation is not an end-point. Quality is a journey; one has to demonstrate continuous improvement time and again. There is a need for continuous quality improvement and the standards should be modified as per the needs.”
He also said that accreditation stimulates a culture of safety in the healthcare space. It ensures safe use of high risk medication, reporting errors, risk assessment and good governance. It also leads to best practices and innovation.
He suggested that clinical trials should also be accreditated. “Accreditation for clinical trials research is an integral part of advancement in medicine. We need to promote clinical trials in an ethical way. Very soon NABH will be coming out with the ethics committee for clinical trials,” Kalra added.
Summing up, Kalra pointed out that accreditation in healthcare is a simple measure. He also opined that NABH alone cannot bring about a transformation in healthcare delivery. He called for stronger and more meaningful collaborations between the government and private stakeholders to enhance the healthcare sector in India.
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