ICHA Patient Safety

We all desire a safe, timely, effective, efficient, equitable and patient – centred healthcare. However, healthcare today evokes highly emotional responses from all stakeholders. Everybody feels the crying need for improvement. Healthcare has become complex, costly and risky. The drastic improvement in healthcare is what everybody needs and wants and yet few are willing to do something about it. However, these issues can be addressed, but not on an individual or piecemeal basis. It is a systemic issue and needs redressal as such.
Magnitude of Unsafe Healthcare
In Healthcare there is a tsunami everyday …….We don’t realize it!

At any time, over 1.4 million people worldwide are suffering from infections acquired in health-care facilities. In intensive care units, Hospital infection affects about 30% of patients and the attributable mortality may reach 44%
Traumatic injuries and surgical procedures are on the rise. WHO’s global estimates are

• 63 million trauma cases
• 31 million malignancies
• 10 million obstetric complications
• Surgery rates ≈ Child birth rates
• 234 million major operations worldwide each year. Surgeries are the most complex health services and costliest. Hence Safe Surgery is a Public Health Priority.

Hospitalization is bankrupting worldwide …. and so is a Public Health Issue.

Studies show that unsafe care leading to additional hospitalization, litigation costs, infections acquired in hospitals, lost income, disability and medical expenses have cost some countries between US$6 billion and US$29 billion a year.

Though no reliable Indian data is available, but healthcare experiences, media reports and estimates by WHO and other global agencies suggest a worse, definitely not any better, situation in India.

We need solutions urgently!
Despite the recognition that “safe healthcare for all” is fundamental to deliver desirable healthcare, insufficient resources have been invested/allocated to address the problem in a concerted and consequential manner.

How ICHA proposes to address the issue?

We, ICHA (details later) propose to implement the above in our country with our technical and professional competencies covering the areas of education, awareness and best practices implementation thus bring about the desired change. The economic benefits of this activity itself would bring returns several times the investment required. The social and public benefits are a bonus.

ICHA Patient Safety Initiative – What ICHA has done?

ICHA has embarked on Patient Safety implementation through the WHO – Patient Safety, Action Areas and Global Patient Safety Challenges (GPSC I, II & III) as below:-

Commonwealth Fellowship Programme

• On-line learning program on Patient Safety through Peoples Uni.
• Multi – location events: One day events have been conducted all over the country viz. Mumbai on April 19th 09. The subsequent programs were at Bhopal Jaipur, Jalandhar, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Ranchi, Bangalore, Lucknow, Vellore, Chennai and a scheduled program at New Delhi. (See presentation).
• Develop partnerships with Healthcare Systems.
• Consolidation and Pre-convention event at Delhi in September.

ICHA Convention on Patient Safety: 27 – 29 November 09 at New Delhi.

The convention had detailed deliberations on various aspects of Patient Safety and focus on all WHO-Patient Safety Action Areas. The focus shall be on India centric priorities and contributions. The outcome shall be that ICHA fraternity with Global Partners:

ICHA Alliance for Patient Safety: To form Action Area Groups to sustain and carry forward the Patient Safety mission continually.

Bringing together major Health Systems viz. Railways, ESIC, CGHS, DHS – Delhi Govt., JSK, and priority states, MCD Delhi.

• ICNR, DGHS and various educational institutions including MAMC, LHMC, RML and AIIMS.
• Professional Councils viz. Medical, Dental, Pharmacy and Nursing
• Technology innovations in collaboration with Biomedical Engineering Group of IITs and other institutions
• Expand avenues like research projects, Scholarships / Fellowships, Safety Prizes etc.
• Ongoing programs in Medical Colleges and Collaborative Centres.
• Maternal and Neonatal Safety initiative

Thus reinforcing ICHA’s mission, viz. “Patient Safety as the core of Healthcare Excellence”.

Why ICHA?

Indian Confederation for Healthcare Accreditation is a professionally owned and driven Not-for-Profit organisation incorporated as a Section 25 Company. The basic aim of ICHA is to strengthen our health system using modified accreditation as a tool. Addressing comprehensively the complexities of health system requires a collaborative team effort of all stakeholders. ICHA is the National multi-stakeholder Confederation of National Associations/ Institutions for establishing validated excellence in healthcare in line with similar bodies in all developed countries. ICHA comprises all stakeholder groups viz. Providers, Receivers and users, Payers and funders and Educators and regulators.
Today all the major National associations of Medical (Clinical, Lab, Admin), Nursing, Pharmacy, Therapy, Consumers, Management and Architects are subscribers. All the associations are well established, recognized as respective apex bodies.
Convention publication and presentation (2009)

ICHA logo depicts its mission of Patient Centred Healthcare. Patient Safety is the hallmark of excellence and our chosen path to achieve excellence.
The major strengths of ICHA are: –

• Multi-stakeholder body comprising all stakeholders. Constituent National Associations / Institutions ensure high credibility of ICHA.
• Structure engenders opportunity to contribute by all and still circumventing politicking and individualism while achieving balanced outcomes.
• Nearly 700 Affiliates from all walks and all over the country. Most of these very senior people are the virtual advisory panel. This resource capability assures ICHA being a “one-stop-shop” for all inputs needed for strengthening health systems in all its diverse aspects.
• Trust – Transparency – Transactions as the core values.

ICHA Patient Safety Initiative – The Future Focus

• Patient Safety Education in educational institutions through professional councils and online programs
• Best practices implementation in all areas
• India Centric concerns like Maternal and Neonatal Safety
• Partnerships with major public and private Healthcare systems
• Technology Innovations

To bring about the desired change thus reinforcing ICHA’s mission “Patient Safety as the core of Healthcare Excellence”.

Download Presentation

ICHA Initiative on Pt Safety

Scientific Programme : ICHA Convention for patient safety