Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan and Union Health Secretary Apurva Chandra jointly chaired a virtual meeting with Chief Secretaries and Directors General of Police (DGPs) from various states to discuss enhancing the safety of healthcare professionals. This meeting follows the Supreme Court’s order on August 22, which called for immediate measures to ensure the safety of doctors and healthcare workers.

The discussions centered around the urgent need for state governments and Union Territories (UTs) to implement safety protocols in healthcare settings, pending the National Task Force’s (NTF) report on addressing these concerns. The NTF, which had its initial meeting chaired by Cabinet Secretary TV Somanathan earlier this week, is tasked with reviewing and proposing solutions for the safety of healthcare workers.

During the meeting, state and UT officials, including Chief Secretaries and DGPs, provided updates on the steps taken to improve security and create a safer environment for healthcare professionals in public and private hospitals, medical colleges, and other healthcare facilities.

Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan urged state officials to ensure the installation of CCTV cameras in vulnerable areas, integrate healthcare facilities with the 112 helpline, implement access control in large hospitals, and familiarize staff with the updated provisions under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

Union Health Secretary Apurva Chandra encouraged states to adopt innovative approaches to enhance security. He suggested measures such as conducting joint security audits with district collectors and police, reviewing and addressing infrastructure and security gaps in district hospitals (DHs) and medical colleges (MCs), and regularly checking the credentials of hired security personnel.

Chandra also emphasized the need for control rooms in larger hospitals to monitor CCTV footage and respond to distress calls promptly. He recommended regular security drills, similar to fire safety drills, and capacity-building initiatives for security staff. Additionally, he proposed the deployment of patient facilitators to manage patient flow, thereby reducing the burden on healthcare staff.

Other suggestions included training doctors and healthcare workers in bereavement protocols, establishing security and safety committees involving senior and junior residents for ongoing monitoring, and routine security patrols during nighttime in hospital and medical college premises.

(ANI)