Trivandrum: Kerala became the first State to roll out a national infection control program – SAFE-ITSM aiming at supporting small and medium hospitals in attaining quality-of-care standards to reduce hospital associated infections.

National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers (NABH), Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD) and a constituent body under the Quality Council of India (QCI) are joining together to launch the infection control programme. These organisations aims to strengthen the health systems in the country and promoting continuous quality improvement to ensure the best care for patients with effective infection control practices in hospitals.

“There is a necessity to institute safety standards in all health care institutions of India. We are trying our best to introduce quality assurance mechanisms in the healthcare system in India. In this program our partner BD will provide on and off-site technical support to the hospitals for upgrading their infection control practices. This programme will be a stepping stone for the hospitals to begin their journey towards NABH accreditation that will help these hospitals to avail community insurance schemes,” said Dr K.V. Beena, District Program Manager, National Rural Health Mission at a press conference today.