BENGALURU: The Centre’s directive against the reuse of single-use medical devices has brought Karnataka’s monitoring of private hospitals under scrutiny, with public health experts warning that inadequate staffing, limited inspections and weak enforcement could undermine patients’ safety.
Experts said the challenge was not merely issuing instructions to healthcare facilities, but ensuring that they are adhered to. They called for dedicated regulatory personnel, routine medical audits and stronger monitoring mechanisms to ensure compliance with safety standards.
Akhila Vasan of Karnataka Janaarogya Chaluvali said enforcing regulations in the private healthcare sector remained a major challenge, particularly when there was no dedicated system to oversee the functioning of hospitals. “It is one thing to just send out an order or circular, while strict enforcement is another matter,” she said, calling for stringent oversight and regular audits of private hospitals.
Vasan said Karnataka already had a legal framework to regulate private medical establishments, but enforcement required adequate resources, and officers specifically assigned to the task. She said the state government could consider a dedicated regulatory structure to ensure that prescribed standards were followed.
She also pointed to the difficulty of monitoring smaller hospitals, clinics and laboratories, saying that practices followed by these facilities were not always easy to track. “Violating standard precautions and reusing such consumables amount to quackery and pose a serious threat to patients,” she added.
Prasanna Saligram, public health researcher at Sarvatrika Arogya Andolana Karnataka, who wrote a policy note for the Karnataka government’s vision committee report on regulation of the private sector, said the regulatory capacity of health departments was constrained by competing responsibilities and staff shortages. Officials often prioritised clinical services over regulatory functions, limiting their ability to inspect healthcare facilities and conduct medical audits, he said.
Saligram called for an autonomous regulatory institution with dedicated staff and funding to oversee private healthcare facilities. Regular inspections and medical audits were necessary to assess compliance and strengthen accountability, he said.
Public health doctor Sylvia Karpagam said limited monitoring could leave gaps in the oversight of private healthcare facilities, particularly smaller clinics and nursing homes. She said she did not have specific evidence to confirm whether single-use medical devices were being reused in Karnataka, but stressed the need for effective oversight to prevent unsafe practices.