Toll-free grievance redressal number bearing fruit

Kolkata: The toll-free number 104, which has been launched by the state Health department to receive treatment-related grievances of patients at state-run hospitals, is already giving the fruit of results to the people.

Millennium Post had reported about the launch of the toll-free number earlier this month.

According to a senior Health department official, all the grievances or complaints lodged by family members of patients are being addressed within a period of 48 hours.

The official said that after receiving the complaint from a patient, it will be examined thoroughly and then sent to the respective departments to ascertain if there was any negligence involved. The complaint would get registered in the computer, which will maintain data.

They will later be sent to the respective departments of Swasthya Bhavan, depending on the nature of the grievance.

Steps would be taken against the hospital authorities or the doctor, nurse or any staff members of the hospital, who will be found guilty.

One of the main purposes of this initiative was to fix the accountability of doctors and health workers in the state-run hospitals and medical colleges. Patients can register their complaints by dialling the toll-free number 104, which remains available round the clock.

Patients having any complaints regarding treatment in any of the state-run hospitals can register their complaints by dialling the number.

It has been developed as a part of Public Grievance Monitoring System (PGMS). The other objective of the project was to minimise the incidents of transfer of patients from one government hospital to the other, both in the city and the districts.

It may be mentioned here that after coming to power, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had taken up a slew of projects to revamp the healthcare infrastructure in the state. A great deal of work has been done to ensure healthcare facilities.

Following a series of complaints against the negligence of doctors and nurses in hospitals, Banerjee wanted to fix the accountability of doctors, nursing and other staff members, so that quality treatment can be delivered to patients at all the state-run hospitals, even in the far-off districts.

She also instructed the senior healthcare officials to make the grievance redressal mechanism of patients more effective, to ensure better health services to patients visiting the district, sub-divisional hospitals and health centres.