The Union Health Ministry has encouraged states to provide actionable reports on the urgent and short-term security measures put in place at medical facilities for physicians and healthcare staff.
Referring to a virtual conference held on August 28, Union Health Secretary Apurva Chandra highlighted the key security measures discussed at the meeting in a letter sent to the chief secretaries and directors general of police (DGPs) of all states and union territories on Tuesday and requested that they submit action-taken reports by September 10.
The meeting’s important themes included the identification of high-risk facilities, which requires each territory or area to identify hospitals with significant footfall and prioritize them for security enhancements.
Besides, the Centre has laid stress on conducting security audits in consultation with local health and police authorities to assess and improve security measures and giving special attention to areas with a higher incidence of security breaches, such as emergency rooms, triage areas, intensive care units (ICUs) and labour rooms.
At the meeting, Chandra also urged the states to ensure the installation and proper functioning of CCTV cameras, particularly in high-risk areas, and regular monitoring of those from a manned central control room.
Establishment of a protocol for quick sharing of the video footage of any untoward incident against healthcare workers with local police to facilitate a swift response and investigation, and technically orienting and training security personnel in soft skills, besides employing ex-servicemen (Directorate General Resettlement) as security personnel in the identified high-risk areas of the hospitals were also discussed.
The states were also asked to explore such manpower from their own security forces.
The letter also highlighted the need for the constitution of an internal security committee in hospitals with active involvement of resident doctors and students, laying down clear standard operating procedures (SOPs) for incidence response and robust background checks for all outsourced personnel and contractual workers employed in the hospitals.
It also emphasised on proper training and establishment of bereavement protocols for all doctors and healthcare workers to handle intense and emotional grief situations and deployment of patient facilitators or MTS for all patient-related activities inside the hospitals, which requires ferrying or shifting patients from diagnostics to therapeutics.
“Most of the states/UTs have informed in the meeting that various actions are already initiated as per the suggestions provided in the letter dated 23.08.2024 by the undersigned. It is also heartening to note that some of the states have initiated additional measures over and above those suggested by the MoHFW. In this regard, all the states and UTs are requested to provide an action-taken report of the immediate/ short-term remedial measures already initiated as well as appropriate action taken before September 10, 2024,” Chandra said in the letter.
On August 22, the Supreme Court directed that “the secretary in the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare shall engage with the chief secretaries and directors general of police so as to ensure that the state governments/Union territories put in place certain basic minimum requirements pending the receipt of the report of the National Task Force to assuage the concerns of the doctors over their safety at their workplaces”.
The states have to take remedial and appropriate action given the exigencies of the situation within two weeks after the meeting, Chandra said.
On August 23, Chandra had written to the chief secretaries and DGPs of all states, drawing their attention to the issue of violent incidents in medical institutions and a recent protest of resident doctors across the country following an incident of alleged rape and killing of a trainee doctor at the state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata.
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