Metro cities to get blood banks
Gearing up to meet high standards of safety in blood transfusion, the Government has approved providing the four major metros with blood banks, which would also be centres of excellence for transfusion medicine.
Health policy
Docs with foreign PG set to get govt’s nod
In a bid to allow Indian doctors practising abroad to return and plug the acute shortage in healthcare back home, the government may soon recognize postgraduate medical degrees of 10 foreign countries.
Europe aims for interoperable EHRs by 2015
The European Commission has published new draft of interoperability guidelines setting out a roadmap to achieve interoperable electronic health records across the continent by the middle of the next decade.
For Indian doctors, PG now a long and rustic journey
Doctors will have to have a rural stint for a year before getting their masters degree in medicine. Beginning next academic session, doctors will have to undergo a mandatory additional one-year rural internship as part of their post graduate (PG) degree in medicine. At present, PG in medicine is a three-year course, which most doctors pursue to specialise in niche areas.
Rural healthcare improvement high on J and K govt agenda
The Jammu and Kashmir government has taken a slew of initiatives and administrative reforms to improve healthcare facilities in rural areas of the state.
Delhi’s govt hospitals told to ramp up
Concerned over the deteriorating health care service in the government hospitals, the Chief Minister of Delhi Shiela Dikshit directed all the Medical Superintendents of the Government Hospitals to provide more attention on maintenance in hospitals to enable them to bring desired improvement in healthcare.
Health in emergency to be on concurrent list
The Health Ministry is working on a Bill which, if all goes to plan, will place public health in times of natural disasters, epidemic outbreaks and acts of terror in the Concurrent List before the end of this year, giving the Centre the power to independently promulgate laws and lay down rules. Public health is so far a state subject, exclusively in the domain of state governments.
Hospitals must give records within 72 hrs
In a landmark order, the national consumer disputes redressal commission has made it mandatory for all medical practitioners and hospitals across the country to provide the entire medical records of a patient to himher or the authorised nominee or legal authorities concerned within 72 hours of the demand.
Indians can now dial 108 for emergency
India is gradually moving to use of one emergency telephone number across the country, 108, on the lines of America’s 911 and Britain’s 999.
New experiments in government hospitals
Madhya Pradesh government hospitals are being enabled to keep pace with the changing times. With a view to implementing the action plan prepared for this purpose, the State Health Committee has sanctioned INR seven crore 60 lakh 63 thousand.
India to ban mobile phone ads showing children, pregnant women
New guidelines have been drafted by the Indian government banning advertisements showing children and pregnant women.
Jharkhand plans e-health network
Patients in remote villages of Jharkhand will soon have access to specialists without having to travel long distances for an examination.
Pvt hospitals to cross-subsidise treatment cost
Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram has urged private hospitals to cross-subsidise treatment cost, saying government alone could not meet the requirement of poor patients.
