The State government is planning to launch its comprehensive referral and back-referral system for patients on a pilot basis at the Government Medical College Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram.
According to a note from the office of Health Minister Veena George on Wednesday, the effort will be to reduce the patient load on medical college hospitals and to ensure better treatment in other hospitals. Unnecessary referring of patients to medical college hospitals will not be allowed. All the hospitals will have a referral register system, which should be examined by the respective superintendents. They should also give a detailed report on it to the respective district medical officers. The Minister said that if unnecessary referrals were noticed, action would be initiated against those responsible for them. A decision to this effect was taken at a high-level meeting of officials.
The system is being implemented after revising the existing referral and back referral guidelines. Facilities at secondary level hospitals will be improved and doctors will be trained in better healthcare. Patients should not be referred to medical college hospitals in faraway places but shifted to nearby specialty or super-specialty hospitals. This will help save time and avoid longer travel.
Health officials claimed that specialty services were available right from the level of a taluk hospital. Also, specialty and super-specialty services were provided at select primary health centres and family health centres and through e-Sanjeevani doctor-to-doctor consultation system. Referring people to medical college hospitals without depending on them will prove cumbersome for the patients and their caregivers as well as the hospital staff.
The back referral system too is being implemented along with this. Patients will have to seek follow-up treatment at the nearby hospitals after undergoing treatment at the medical college hospital.
