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40 healthcare facilities get NQAS certification
The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MOHFW) has given National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification to 40 health facilities in Karnataka for maintaining high standard quality at the institutions.
The State has seen a 2.6 times increase in the NQAS certification between 2021-2022. Until 2021, only 11 health facilities had got the NQAS certification, however between 2021-2022, over 40 facilities have got the certification.
Over eight district hospitals, 23 primary health centres (PHCs), seven urban primary health centres ( UPHCs) and two community health centres have got the accreditation in the state.
The NQAS certification is a recognition for the high standards maintained by the hospitals in the state’s public health system.
Recently, the PHCs in Madlur, KRS, Srirangapatna, Mandya, Tubinakere and UPHC Ramanagar received the quality certification. The facilities had undergone virtual assessments by empanelled external by assessors.
NQAS are currently available for district hospitals, CHCs, PHCs and Urban PHCs. Standards are primarily meant for providers to assess their own quality for improvement through predefined standards and to bring up their facilities for certification.
The National Quality Assurance Standards are broadly arranged under eight areas of concern – Service Provision, Patient Rights, Inputs, Support Services, Quality Management and Outcome. These standards are ISQUA accredited and meets global benchmarks in terms of comprehensiveness, objectivity, evidence and rigour of development.
The state carries out the nomination process of some of the health centres by considering the criteria of quality service, infection control, maintenance of documents and others, after which it goes under the assessment.
With over 40 of the health facilities marked with NQAS, it has instilled confidence in the public on the services provided in government hospitals. “The Department of Health and Family Welfare in Karnataka is stepping up quality improvement of its Healthcare Facilities. Total 40 facilities of the state are now NQAS certified. I congratulate all the PHC teams for taking up the assessment and acquiring the certification,” said HFW commissioner Randeep D. Bangalore Mirror