UP Govt makes Childbirth Reporting mandatory for Private Hospitals
Lucknow Strengthens Maternal and Child Health Surveillance
Lucknow: In a decisive move to improve maternal and child health monitoring and address gender disparities in birth records, the Lucknow health administration has initiated collecting detailed data on childbirths in private hospitals.
This development follows a directive from Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, who recently emphasised the need for precise data on childbirths, especially from private healthcare facilities, during a meeting at Raj Bhavan. She instructed officials to ensure the mandatory collection of childbirth-related information from all such institutions.
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According to Hindustan Times, “Private hospitals are now required to report the exact number of childbirths and maternity-related activities through the hospital management information system (HMIS) portal,” Yogesh Raghuwanshi, district health and education information officer (DHEIO) at the office of chief medical office (CMO), said on Wednesday.
Raghuwanshi explained that this step is intended to streamline maternity and child health monitoring in the private healthcare sector. The health department has already requested the generation of HMIS login credentials for all private hospitals in the district. Several hospitals have received their IDs and begun uploading data, while the remaining facilities are expected to be onboarded soon.
To ensure compliance, the local health administration recently convened a meeting with around 75 hospitals in the state capital. Officials emphasized the need to report every delivery case, along with detailed information on mother and child immunisation and family planning services.
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The governor, Patel, also urged the formulation of a clear, long-term strategy to improve institutional deliveries and address issues like premature births. According to TOI, "The decline in the number of girl children is extremely worrying. There is a need for greater public awareness, better health services, and firm policy measures to reverse this trend," she said.
