The 7th International Patient Safety Conference (IPSC) 2017 concluded with the adoption of the Mumbai Declaration on Patient Safety. The IPSC event organized by Apollo Hospitals in Mumbai on the 1st and 2nd Dececmber, 2017, witnessed collaboration with eminent speakers and international agencies including WHO, IMA, AIIMS, IMA, KPMG, JCI (US), NABH and leading Indian providers. The Union Minister of State for Health & Family Welfare, Smt. Anupriya Patel, addressed a Joint Plenary session on patient safety and IT in healthcare.
 

The Mumbai Declaration suggested recommendations for the government to encourage individual physicians, healthcare professionals, patients and other partner organizations to work together to establish systems that secure patient safety.Addressing the session, Smt. Patel said, "Patient safety and the use of technology in healthcare will be the great driving force for creating a health system that is accessible, equitable and affordable. The government is very keen in addressing the patient safety challenge and improving healthcare through IT. This we believe can be met through a cross-sectoral approach that is through partnerships, collaborations and policy formulations. I must commend Dr.

Reddy for organizing these two conferences on subjects that shall prove to be pivotal for the future of healthcare in our country."Sharing his thoughts, Dr. Prathap C. Reddy, Chairperson and Founder, Apollo Hospitals Group, said, "We believe that patient safety is a subject of great concern and should be considered a priority to address the healthcare challenges. It is not just the role of the government, but we as healthcare providers should come together and bring in the global best practices on patient safety in India. I am glad to see such an overwhelming response to this initiative from all peers and public bodies."

Talking on the adoption of the Mumbai Declaration, Ms.Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals, says, "The Mumbai Declaration marks a paradigm move to ensure that patient safety becomes sacrosanct to the way care is delivered. The declaration will make patient centricity the bedrock in the age of Uber-isation and Democratisation of healthcare. We urge all stakeholders - doctors, hospitals, policymakers and the government to further the philosophy of the Mumbai Declaration and usher in an era of quality care that is accessible to all."

The Mumbai Declaration on Patient Safety recommends that separate forums be created for antibiotic policy framework, facility safety framework, overall patient safety standards and a forum for measuring and monitoring outcomes at the government level. It recommends each hospital to drive on the principles defined by the declaration viz:

• Every hospital shall have a person designated for patient safety
• Every hospital shall have a Patient Safety Committee with representatives from medical services, nursing, engineering, housekeeping, pharmacy and infection control that shall meet every quarter
• Every hospital shall train all its employees on patient safety issues and hand washing
• Every hospital shall educate its patients on patient safety issues and give them an opportunity to ask questions.
• Every hospital shall have a policy and implemented a system for reporting of adverse events within the organization.
• Every hospital shall cooperate with one another and exchange information about adverse events, including errors, their solutions, and 'lessons learned' to improve patient safety
• Every hospital shall collect rates for the following patient safety indices: - Patient falls - Pressure ulcers - Needlestick injuries - Medication errors (Prescription, transcription, dispensing and administration errors) - Hospital-acquired infections - Antibiotic utilization - Hand-washing

About Apollo Hospitals, Apollo Hospitals marked its presence in Mumbai with the launch of its Navi Mumbai unit in November 2016. The Hospital recently completed one year of its operations in the city.