New Delhi : Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Jagat Prakash Nadda chaired a ‘Kayakalp Manthan’ with Central Government Hospitals, NGOs and senior officials of the Union Health Ministry to boost Jan Bhagidari for achieving better health outcomes .He highlighted the transformative journey of the Kayakalp Scheme, launched 10 years ago, to promote cleanliness, hygiene, and infection control practices in public healthcare facilities across India.
Initially rolled out in 2015 with the participation of 10 Central Government Hospitals, the scheme now includes 25 Central Govt. hospitals and institutions, expanding its reach to numerous healthcare centres across the nation. In State Govt. Hospitals and healthcare Institutions, the Scheme is operative through national Health Mission (NHM).
He underlined that, while significant progress has made under the scheme, there is scope to do better. He highlighted two main observations: (i) substantial improvements has been made over the last decade, but continued efforts are needed to further enhance public healthcare delivery, and (ii) evolving towards a patient-centric ecosystem is critical for meeting the ever-increasing expectations of public service delivery.
The Union Health Minister spoke about the importance of environment and ambiance in healthcare facilities, emphasizing that a positive hospital environment affects the mental wellbeing of both patients and staff. He pointed out that while thousands of patients visit hospitals daily and receive quality treatment, there is a noticeable lack of positive from the patient despite getting best of the clinical treatment, which calls for introspection and better communication from the hospitals to patients and the public.
A key point of discussion was the perception of government hospitals and the factors that contribute to the image building. The Minister urged all stakeholders to focus on understanding the root causes of these perceptions, including issues related to infrastructure, cleanliness, staff behaviour, amenities, and management, in order to identify and implement practical solutions.
He noted that while challenges encountered by hospitals may vary, many of these could be addressed through better management and prioritization of services. However, chronic challenges on account of lack of lack of prioritization and proper attention, and this leads to dilution of services provided to the patients.