Free diagnostic services to be provided to patients for Viral Hepatitis A, B, C, and E at PGI
Four new categories will be created in the Hospital Information System (HIS), namely Hepatitis B, C, A and E, and patients will be enrolled under this category by the Medical Records Department (MRD) only on recommendations of the treating consultant, and MRD will keep a scanned copy of recommendation of treating consultant.
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“The PGI ecosystem has an umbilical cord linked to patient care, and this will be implemented at the earliest possible date,” said Prof Lal.In a circular issued by Prof Vivek Lal, PGI director, to the heads of both the clinical and non-clinical departments and other officials, in a patient-friendly initiative, it has been decided that free diagnostic services will be provided to the patients for Viral Hepatitis A, B, C, and E on outdoor and indoor basis at PGI, Chandigarh.
Being a tertiary healthcare body catering to a huge catchment area comprising patients from Chandigarh, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttar Pradesh as well as to other nearby states, it was decided that the service of free testing for patients of viral Hepatitis A, B, C and E as mandated by guidelines of NVHCP, Government of India, be provided to all OPD and IPD patients irrespective of their domicile.
Four new categories will be created in the Hospital Information System (HIS), namely Hepatitis B, C, A and E, and patients will be enrolled under this category by the Medical Records Department (MRD) only on recommendations of the treating consultant, and MRD will keep a scanned copy of recommendation of treating consultant. The treating consultant will recommend patients to be put under this category after these patients are detected to be positive for any of the four viral markers, namely HBsAg, anti-HCV, IgM anti-HAV and IgM anti-HEV within six months of reporting.
Patients once enrolled under the category of Hepatitis B and C will be provided this facility for one year, after which the category will automatically change to general. Renewal shall be done based on fresh recommendations of treating doctors. The list of tests to be provided free of charge under this category has been specified for patients during the treatment period. This facility will be initiated after the creation of four new categories in the HIS, namely Hepatitis B, C, A, and E, by the computer section.
Hepatitis refers to an inflammation of the liver, a vital organ that performs hundreds of essential functions, including filtering toxins, producing proteins, and aiding digestion. When the liver is damaged by hepatitis, these functions are compromised. Viral hepatitis is caused by viruses , predominantly Hepatitis A, B, C, and E.
Hepatitis A and E are spread through contaminated food and water and infection with these viruses causes an acute onset of jaundice, which is usually self-limiting but can sometimes progress to acute liver failure, which is potentially life-threatening.
On the other hand, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C viruses are spread through infected blood or body fluid exposure, including unsafe sexual and injection practices. They usually cause chronic long-term infections. Hepatitis B and C are silent killers that damage the liver over many years, leading to serious conditions like cirrhosis (scarring of the liver), end-stage liver disease and even liver cancer.
“The PGI ecosystem has an umbilical cord linked to patient care, and this will be implemented at the earliest possible date,” said Prof Lal, adding that the decision is another step in patient care.
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