Ask A Question

Express Healthcare’s interactive FAQ section titled – ‘Ask A Question’ addresses reader queries related to hospital planning and management. Industry expert Tarun Katiyar, Principal Consultant, Hospaccx India Systems, through his sound knowledge and experience, shares his insights and provide practical solutions to questions directed by Express Healthcare readers

Question: Brief us on some of the functions of the healthcare technology management professionals.
– Nitish, Baroda

Answer: Equipment control and Asset management, equipment inventories, work order management, data quality management, equipment maintenance management, personnel management, quality assurance, patient safety, risk management, hospital safety programmes, radiation safety, medical gas systems, in-service education and training, accident investigation, analysis of failures, root-causes and human factors are some of the basic functions of technology management professionals.

Question: What is green building concept?
– Leela, Pune

Answer: Green building refers to a structure and processes that is environmentally responsible and resource-efficient throughout a building’s lifecycle from sitting to design, construction, operation, maintenance, renovation, and demolition. In other words, green building design involves finding the balance between home building and the sustainable environment. This requires close co-operation of the design team, architects, engineers and the client at all project stages.

Question: What is the importance of rural market penetration through telemedicine?
– Dr Ajay Lulla, Udaipur

Answer: The advances in medical science and bio-medical engineering on one hand and telecommunication and information technology on the other are offering wide opportunities for improved healthcare in India. The factors that are likely to drive the growth of telemedicine in India are the following:

• Inaccessibility of care for majority of the population
• A severe shortage of skilled and qualified doctors in the rural areas
• High cost of healthcare, particularly for secondary and tertiary care
• Very high patient volume in the rural areas compared to the number of doctors, hospital beds and trained medical staff
• Problem of retaining doctors in rural areas
• Specialist doctors cannot be retained at rural areas as they will be professionally isolated and become obsolete
• Widespread availability of mobile network

Question: What are the main challenges to set up a healthcare facility in rural areas?
– Manish Jha, Ranchi

Answer: Main challenges that we face while setting up in rural areas are:

• Funding of healthcare projects
• Day-to-day operation facilities
• Affordability of care
• Availability of healthcare staff
• Access to essential drugs and medicine

Question: In which places do we require toilets for the handicapped in a hospital?
– Nilesh Shah, Surat

Answer: As per NABH norms, toilets for the disabled is compulsory in the OPD area. IPD doesn’t require handicapped toilets as such because wards have separate toilets for patients. Still if you want to place it in IPD and in other sections you can do so but it is not mandatory.

Question: What will be the benefits of Electronic Medical Record system in India?
– Leena Bahal, Mohali

Answer: The benefits that an EMR is expected to bring in are:

• Paperless medical history
• Reduced healthcare costs
• Empowering the stakeholders to be able to deliver right treatment at the right time
• Promote the practice of evidence-based medicine
• Accelerate research and building effective medical practices
• Usher in ease in maintaining health information of patients
• With proper backup policies increase life-span of health records of individuals that is from conception to cremation
• Safety with access, audit and authorisation control mechanisms
• Faster search and update