Abstract

Teaching hospitals are the apex body of Indian hospital system and are expected to lead from the front in offering quality health care services in a safe environment by qualified and skilled staff. In this study, we conducted a reality check on some teaching hospitals in Maharashtra to assess gaps between declared policies and actual results achieved. We studied three parameters, i.e., human resource management (HRM), quality and safety, and communication and patient relations through three indicators, viz., policies, practices, and services from the Joint Commission International Accreditation (JCIA) standards in concurrence with National Accreditation Board for Hospitals (NABH). A total of 11 teaching hospitals were selected randomly across Maharashtra. The requisite data for the study were collected through personal interview from medical superintendents, employees, and patients. The responses were coded as: 10 (full compliance), 5 (partial compliance), and 0 (no compliance) as per NABH evaluation criteria. The study shows that while teaching hospitals are maintaining most of the policies, they are poor in translating the standards into practices and services. Teaching hospitals need to lay greater emphasis on continuous training and development of their employees that should be focused on improving quality of patient care as per global standards as far as possible.

Authors and Affiliations