Safe Healthcare for Everyone

Source: The post Safe Healthcare for Everyone has been created, based on the article “Making health care safe for every Indian” published in “The Hindu” on 17 September 2025. Safe Healthcare for Everyone. 

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper -2- Issues Relating to Development and Management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.

Context: World Patient Safety Day is observed on 17 September every year to highlight the importance of patient safety worldwide. In India, where the burden of disease is shifting to chronic conditions requiring long-term treatment, patient safety has become a critical issue.

Key Issues in Patient Safety in India

1. High Risk Situations: Chronic illnesses like cancer, diabetes, and heart disease require multiple specialists and increase the chances of errors.
2. Unsafe Practices: Hospital-acquired infections, inappropriate medication combinations, delayed diagnoses, and preventable falls persist.
3. Overburdened Providers: High patient loads, long shifts, and inadequate staffing contribute to fatigue and errors.
4. Passive Patients: Patients hesitate to ask questions, leading to poor communication and missed safety checks.
5. Low Accreditation: Less than 5% of hospitals in India have full accreditation under NABH standards.

Steps Taken by India

1. National Patient Safety Implementation Framework (2018–25): Provides a roadmap from adverse-event reporting to embedding safety into clinical practice.
2. Professional Networks: Society of Pharmacovigilance India monitors and reports adverse drug reactions nationwide.
3. Accreditation: NABH sets benchmarks for infection control, patient rights, and medical management.
4. Civil Society Initiatives: Patient Safety & Access Initiative of India Foundation works on medical device clarity.
5. Patient Advisory Councils: Involving patient voices in hospital decision-making to improve communication and trust.

Challenges Remaining

1. Implementation Gap: Need to bridge the gap between policy and practice.
2. Capacity Building: Incorporating patient safety into medical and nursing education.
3. Resource Mobilization: Hospitals need to meet accreditation standards and co-develop technology solutions.
4. Public Awareness: Patients and families need to become active participants in care.

Way Forward

1. Strengthen accreditation and standard protocols in all hospitals.
2. Mobilize resources and co-develop technology solutions to catch errors early.
3. Foster a culture of safety through patient advisory councils and public campaigns.
4. Integrate patient safety into medical and nursing curricula to sustain improvements.
5. Encourage CSR and innovation to fund safety campaigns and improve workflows.

Question: Patient safety is a crucial but often overlooked dimension of India’s health-care system. Discuss the key challenges and measures taken to improve patient safety in India.