Infant deaths aftermath: Delhi hospitals ramp up fire safety measures
Hospitals across the NCT (National Capital Territory) of Delhi are in the process of finalising their fire safety audit reports that are to be submitted to the Delhi government by June 8, as part of measures taken in the aftermath of of a fire at a Vivek Vihar facility that left six infants dead.After the fire at the Baby Care New Born hospital in Vivek Vihar on May 25, Delhi health minister Saurabh Bharadwaj announced that the health department has sought fire safety audit reports from all hospitals, setting a deadline of June 8.HT on Thursday contacted multiple hospitals across the region to assess the progress in meeting the compliance sought. The bigger hospitals usually have a fire safety team that takes care of compliances, and smaller hospitals mostly go for third-party audits to submit the report to government, it was found.Read Here: Delhi fire dept got over 200 calls on May 29, highest so far this year“Fire prevention, timely detection, and swift extinguishing protocols are in place. We prioritise the safety and well-being of our patients, staff, and visitors. We regularly conduct comprehensive fire audits across our facilities,” a spokesperson for Fortis Healthcare said in a statement.Delhi’s Indraprastha Apollo Hospital got its annual maintenance renewal done about 10 days ago. According to hospital officials, the hospital gets random fire audits done by a third party. “Our staff is well trained in fire drills and knows how to operate fire extinguishers and other equipment,” a hospital official said.Manipal Hospital in Dwarka also opts for third-party checks and conducts mock drills every month to ensure readiness. “In the audit, we check the electrical risk and check all testing records like alarm, hydrant, and sprinkler system. Smoke detectors are tested every month,” Viji Varghese, hospital director, Manipal Hospital, Dwarka, said.Delhi hospital fire: Over 1/4th of Delhi’s 1,183 nursing homes unregisteredVivek Sama, director, 20-bed Sama Nursing Home and Hospital near Siri Fort Road, said, “We get a fire audit done annually by a qualified and experienced auditor. In addition, we check our fire safety equipment on a monthly basis and have biannual fire safety training for our staff.”Government-run hospitals are also required to submit reports.Administrative officials at Lok Nayak Hospital, said that fire alarm systems were being checked regularly. “Fire drills are conducted regularly, with the last two held on May 18 and May 22. We have also briefed staff on taking precautions like not leaving windows open in rooms where an air conditioner is on,” an official, requesting anonymity, said.Officials at the Guru Nanak Eye Institute, a Delhi government-run facility, said that a fire drill, specifically designed for the operation theatre was conducted on Tuesday. “We are checking fire alarms as well as training staff to improve our response time in case of an emergency,” a hospital official, requesting anonymity, said.
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Hospitals across the NCT (National Capital Territory) of Delhi are in the process of finalising their fire safety audit reports that are to be submitted to the Delhi government by June 8, as part of measures taken in the aftermath of of a fire at a Vivek Vihar facility that left six infants dead.
After the fire at the Baby Care New Born hospital in Vivek Vihar on May 25, Delhi health minister Saurabh Bharadwaj announced that the health department has sought fire safety audit reports from all hospitals, setting a deadline of June 8.
HT on Thursday contacted multiple hospitals across the region to assess the progress in meeting the compliance sought. The bigger hospitals usually have a fire safety team that takes care of compliances, and smaller hospitals mostly go for third-party audits to submit the report to government, it was found.
Read Here: Delhi fire dept got over 200 calls on May 29, highest so far this year
“Fire prevention, timely detection, and swift extinguishing protocols are in place. We prioritise the safety and well-being of our patients, staff, and visitors. We regularly conduct comprehensive fire audits across our facilities,” a spokesperson for Fortis Healthcare said in a statement.
Delhi’s Indraprastha Apollo Hospital got its annual maintenance renewal done about 10 days ago. According to hospital officials, the hospital gets random fire audits done by a third party. “Our staff is well trained in fire drills and knows how to operate fire extinguishers and other equipment,” a hospital official said.
Manipal Hospital in Dwarka also opts for third-party checks and conducts mock drills every month to ensure readiness. “In the audit, we check the electrical risk and check all testing records like alarm, hydrant, and sprinkler system. Smoke detectors are tested every month,” Viji Varghese, hospital director, Manipal Hospital, Dwarka, said.
Delhi hospital fire: Over 1/4th of Delhi’s 1,183 nursing homes unregistered
Vivek Sama, director, 20-bed Sama Nursing Home and Hospital near Siri Fort Road, said, “We get a fire audit done annually by a qualified and experienced auditor. In addition, we check our fire safety equipment on a monthly basis and have biannual fire safety training for our staff.”
Government-run hospitals are also required to submit reports.
Administrative officials at Lok Nayak Hospital, said that fire alarm systems were being checked regularly. “Fire drills are conducted regularly, with the last two held on May 18 and May 22. We have also briefed staff on taking precautions like not leaving windows open in rooms where an air conditioner is on,” an official, requesting anonymity, said.
Officials at the Guru Nanak Eye Institute, a Delhi government-run facility, said that a fire drill, specifically designed for the operation theatre was conducted on Tuesday. “We are checking fire alarms as well as training staff to improve our response time in case of an emergency,” a hospital official, requesting anonymity, said.
