Almost one year after releasing the draft application form seeking comments and suggestions from the stakeholders for finalising the Format for provisional registration of clinical institutions in the country under the Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Bill, the Union Health Ministry is yet to finalise the Format, thanks to the lackadaisical way the issue is being looked at by the senior officials in the ministry.

According to sources, several high level meetings were held to finalise the Format by incorporating the relevant suggestions and comments from the stakeholders. Late last year, the ministry had released the draft Format, seeking comments and suggestions from the stakeholders. The stakeholders were given time till January 31, 2009 to send their comments and suggestions. The ministry had received several feedbacks from the stakeholders and experts.

Since then the ministry has been toying with the subject to finalise the Format. But, the officials are yet to finalise the Format without which the process of provisional registration of clinical establishments could not be initiated. The ministry's plan was to kick-start voluntary registration of clinical establishments to collect a database of clinical establishments spread across the country.

The provisional registration of clinical establishments is part of the Clinical Establishments Registration and Regulation Bill which is expected to be tabled in Parliament in the next session. The Bill is being proposed to be enacted by the government as a comprehensive legislative framework for the registration and regulation of clinical establishments in the country. It is aimed to provide among others minimum standards for facilities and services with a view to standardizing health care services and for achieving improvement of public health.

By the time the Bill is tabled in Parliament, the ministry wanted to collect a database of clinical establishments spread across every nook and corner of the country. It was for this purpose that the ministry was to finalize a draft Format for provisional registration of clinical institutions. Once the format is finalized, the ministry will ask the clinical establishments to come forward voluntarily to register their establishment.

The draft format was developed by the National Council of Standards under the health ministry. The registration format seeks information regarding the profile of the clinical establishment, infrastructure, facilities offered, human resources among other aspects. As per the Clinical Establishment (Registration and Regulation) Bill, 2007 clinical establishment would include hospitals, maternity home, nursing home, dispensary, clinics and similar facilities with beds that offer diagnosis, treatment or care for illness or injury or pregnancy in any recognised system of medicine (Allopathy, Yoga, Naturopathy, Ayurveda, Homoeopathy, Siddha and Unani).

It also includes any laboratory (either established as independent entity or part of an establishment) which offers pathological, bacteriological, genetic, radiological, chemical, biological and other diagnostic or investigative services. Furthermore, the establishment can be owned by the government or department of the government, a Trust (public or private), a corporation (including a cooperative society), a local authority and a single doctor establishment.