Maharashtra introduces five-star rating system for 623 Govt Hospitals
Government Hospitals
Mumbai: The Maharashtra government has launched a five-star rating system for 623 public hospitals under the state Public Health Department as part of a major initiative to improve the quality, transparency, and accountability of healthcare services.
The initiative, announced through a Government Resolution (GR) issued on Friday, aims to provide citizens with a transparent assessment of government hospitals while encouraging healthcare institutions to enhance service standards.
Under the new mechanism, government hospitals will be awarded ratings ranging from zero to five stars based on their performance across key healthcare indicators.
According to the GR, hospitals will be assessed on five broad parameters: availability and responsiveness of healthcare services; access to diagnostic facilities and essential medicines; hospital performance; quality of medical services; and patient facilities and feedback. “Each hospital will be evaluated on 10 quality indicators, with each indicator carrying half a star. Hospitals meeting all the prescribed benchmarks will receive a five-star rating, while those failing to meet any criterion will receive no stars,” the GR said, reports Deccan Chronicle.
The assessment will consider factors such as the availability of at least 80 per cent specialised services, attendance of doctors and support staff, availability of essential medicines, functioning laboratory, X-ray and ECG facilities, outpatient (OPD) attendance, bed occupancy, average monthly deliveries, number of major surgeries performed, cleanliness and sanitation, drinking water, patient amenities, and feedback collected through telephonic surveys.
The Public Health Department will conduct the assessments twice a year, in January and August, through physical inspections and verification of hospital database records. Hospitals securing four stars or more will be awarded recognition certificates for maintaining high standards of healthcare delivery.
The star rating system will be implemented across 623 government healthcare institutions in Maharashtra. These include two referral hospitals, 20 district hospitals, eight general hospitals, 20 women's hospitals, 33 sub-district hospitals, 373 rural hospitals, 78 trauma care centres and 12 Employees' State Insurance (ESI) hospitals.
Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, an official said, “The star rating system is aimed at establishing uniform quality benchmarks, improving accountability, promoting healthy competition among public hospitals and strengthening public confidence in government healthcare services.”
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