Mandatory Medical Audit for Hospital Stays over 10 Days under Swasthya Sathi Scheme
Kolkata: The state health department has introduced new checklists aimed at ensuring the efficient use of Swasthya Sathi, Bengal’s universal health insurance scheme. The latest advisory from the Swasthya Sathi Samiti discourages hospitals from extending hospital stays for common medical problems and from performing additional surgeries beyond the primary planned procedure.
According to the advisory, any Swasthya Sathi patient who requires hospitalization for more than 10 days for common medical issues must now be referred to the scheme's medical audit team to assess the necessity of the prolonged treatment.
A state health official highlighted that hospitals frequently extend the stays of patients with general medical conditions beyond 10 days, which is not always necessary. This not only increases medical expenses but also exposes patients to higher risks of hospital-acquired infections, especially for patients with comorbidities, reports the Daily.
"We have always been informed in case a Swasthya Sathi patient requires a longer hospital stay. We welcome such scrutiny for ensuring judicial utilization of govt funds," said Peerless Hospital CEO Sudipta Mitra. Rupak Barua, MD & CEO of Woodlands Multispecialty Hospital and the president of AHEI (Association of Hospitals of Eastern India) also lauded the move stating, “Both the decisions are welcome. Hospitals should not exploit govt resources. If longer hospital stay is justified or an additional surgery is required, there is a need to follow a process.”
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