Civil Hospital aims to get NQAS certification in three months

The district administration has taken on the challenge of making Civil Hospital, Ludhiana, National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certified within the next three months.

For this, a comprehensive plan is being developed in consultation with senior officials from both the administration and the Civil Surgeon’s office. As the majority of poor and underprivileged patients visit the hospital’s daily OPDs, the primary focus is on enhancing healthcare quality, conducting gap analyses and involving CSR contributions.

Speaking to The Tribune, Deputy Commissioner Himanshu Jain said that with elections now over, his main focus would be to provide the best possible healthcare facilities to the people of Ludhiana, particularly those who cannot afford expensive treatment at private hospitals.

“We are laying a plan and will move towards the execution step by step. I hope to get it NQAS certified in the next three months. For this, we will be conducting pre-assessment and gap analyses. We will also be engaging external consultants for their expertise. The major areas of concern would be the daily OPD/IPD workflow, emergency response, waste disposal, sterilisation protocols, patient consent processes, grievance redressal and ensuring well-equipped operation theatres and laboratories,” said the DC.

The next step involves providing quality training to the staff as per NQAS norms. The DC stated that the staff and lab technicians would receive hands-on training under NQAS guidelines. Other areas of focus include infrastructure upgradation. It is generally observed that hospitals suffer due to poor infrastructure, such as shortages of water and electricity. It will be ensured that Civil Hospital receives 24×7 water and power supply. The labour rooms will be separate and well-equipped with modern facilities.

“We will ensure proper sanitation facilities in the hospital and the administration aims to introduce virtual assessment modules to streamline compliance. There is so much to be done for maintaining hygiene, documentation and records, maintenance of equipment and collection of patient/attendant feedback,” said Jain.

When asked how the project would be implemented and whether any grants had been received, DC Himanshu Jain said he would make every effort to raise funds. “We will request the state government for financial support. Apart from that, under the CSR initiative, industrialists will be requested to contribute their best efforts for the welfare of those in need.”

Ludhiana