NABH develops specific standards for IVF clinics

For the first time, clinics and centres in the country that offer assisted reproductive technology (ART) techniques — which includes in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) services — will have the option to get accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and Healthcare Providers (NABH).

A NABH official ThePrint spoke to said it has developed specific standards for these clinics and centres. Once accredited, these centres will be able to ensure quality and safety of their services to the patients.

According to industry estimates, India currently has around 2,500 ART centres but they lack a proper accreditation system.

Up till now, NABH did not have standards specifically devised for the procedures performed in ART clinics. Only one accreditation body, Quality and Accreditation Institute (QAI), had ART-specific standards in India, with a few centres opting for accreditation. NABH, though, will have more parameters to accredit ART clinics.

Atul Mohan Kochhar, Chief Executive Officer, NABH, told ThePrint that accreditation for ART centres have been developed along the same lines as hospitals but have been modified to include criteria specific to the sector, including safety and standards related to procedures, such as egg extraction, embryo processing and handling fertilisation.

“The norms are now ready and will be released soon,” confirmed Kochhar.

“These standards, apart from ensuring quality of services, will also require that all healthcare professionals and staff members have proper and extensive training so that they follow the appropriate procedure every time, ensuring uniform and best patient outcome,” Kochhar added.

The NABH, under the Quality Council of India, evaluates hospitals on more than 600 parameters that are divided into patient-centred or organisation-centred categories. Currently, nearly 840 hospitals in India are accredited by it.

These standards require hospitals to have a process-driven approach in all their functions — from patient registration, admission, pre-surgery, peri-surgery and post-surgery protocols, to discharge from hospital and follow-ups after discharge.

Hospitals also need to meet certain specifications related to infrastructure and human resources.

Welcoming the development, Dr Kshitiz Murdia, chief executive and co-founder of Indira IVF, said the accreditation is an extremely effective mechanism that promotes quality treatment and patient safety in a healthcare setting.

“It helps organisations to define standardised processes for patient safety, clinical care, medication safety, infection control, surgical safety, and facility safety,” he added.

Echoing Murdia, Shobhit Agarwal, chief executive of Nova IVF, too said that this is a welcome move for the clinics as well as for the patients.

According to Kochhar, ART clinics can also apply for entry-level certification via Healthcare Organisation Platform for Entry Level Certification (HOPE), a quality assurance of hospitals, which qualifies them for full accreditation. This two-tier accreditation system would also apply for ART clinics.

Under the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulations) Act, 2021, all ART centres are required to get registered under the government, apart from following rules related to services, infrastructure and manpower. Accreditation is one of the intents of the ART Act and will lead the industry towards standardisation.

“We are following the norms mandated under the Act and going a notch above,” Kochhar said. ThePrint