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To overhaul healthcare services and enhance patient care in hospitals, the National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers (NABH) on Monday revealed that so far, 100 hospitals across India have received digital health certification.
A total of 300 hospitals had applied for the digital certification, which was introduced by NABH in 2023.
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Speaking at the CII Hospital Tech 2024 summit, Rizwan Koita, chairperson of NABH, emphasised that the digital certification is designed to ensure best practices in healthcare through the use of technology.
“This initiative will streamline healthcare operations, ensuring that hospitals adhere to standardised, high-quality processes,” he said, adding the certification is expected to improve patient outcomes by making complex clinical protocols easier to follow through automated systems that guide healthcare professionals at every stage of care.
The certification aims to overhaul healthcare practices by embedding software-driven protocols that standardise every step of patient care across hospital departments, including registration, ICU management, inpatient care, outpatient services, and emergency departments.
The accreditation involves self-evaluation followed by external assessment, resulting in platinum or gold-level certifications based on performance. The process involves evaluating hospitals across seven areas, including infrastructure, data security, information flow, and digital processes.
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In addition to hospitals, NABH is also set to introduce a world-first digital health certification for software products, including Electronic Medical Records (EMR) systems and Health Information Systems (HIS).
Applications for this software certification will open on December 1, allowing companies to apply for standards that ensure their digital solutions meet stringent healthcare requirements. This dual approach, combining hospital and software certifications, is expected to reshape how healthcare is delivered across India.
NABH's future plans also include expanding digital standards to cover specialised healthcare sectors like cancer, diabetes, and maternal care. By embedding protocols for these critical areas into software, the organisation hopes to further enhance healthcare accessibility and quality in India.
Hinduja Hospital is one of the 100 hospitals that have successfully obtained the accreditation. Officials at the hospital said that although the accreditation doesn't currently offer direct monetary benefits, it serves as a valuable self-assessment tool for hospitals to understand their digital readiness. NABH is working on integrating some of the accreditation standards into its upcoming edition, ensuring that hospitals must meet these standards to obtain NABH accreditation.
Speaking on the importance of digital accreditation in the context of data security and privacy, Joy Chakraborty, chief operating officer of P D Hinduja Hospital, highlighted the increasing frequency of cyberattacks on hospitals and the need for security measures. The hospital's decision to apply for the accreditation was driven by maintaining the quality of healthcare throughout its hospitals.
Chakraborty acknowledged the challenges faced by smaller hospitals in adopting digital technologies due to economic constraints. While large hospital chains can adopt digital standards, the majority of healthcare in India remains unorganised and faces significant hurdles in achieving full digital integration.
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