Lok Sabha Question No. 933 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-07-22
Subject: Medical Assistance for Weaker Section
Ministry: HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE
Asked by: Pushpendra Singh Chandel, Mala Rajya Laxmi Shah

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 933 TO BE ANSWERED ON 22 ND  JULY, 2022

## MEDICAL ASSISTANCE FOR WEAKER SECTION

## 933. SHRI KUNWAR PUSHPENDRA SINGH CHANDEL: SHRIMATI MALA RAJYA LAXMI SHAH

Will the MINISTER OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE be pleased to state:

- (a) the  details  of  efforts  made  by  the  Government  to  provide  financial  and  medical support  to  women  belonging  to  economically  weaker  section  during  their  pregnancy  and delivery in Government hospitals; State/UTwise particularly in Uttarakhand and Bundelkhand region;
- (b) the steps being taken by the Government to ensure assured availability of all facilities to pregnant women near their homes, especially at the time of delivery in the remote areas of the country including rural areas of Uttarakhand and Bundelkhand region;
- (c) whether any cases of negligence of pregnant women during delivery in Government hospitals have come to notice; and
- (d) if so, the details thereof, State/UT-wise including Uttarakhand?

## ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE

(DR. BHARATI PRAVIN PAWAR)

- (a) Government of India has several initiatives to provide financial and medical support to all pregnant  women  including  women  belonging  to  economically  weaker  sections  during their pregnancy and delivery in Government hospitals. These include:
1. Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) , a demand promotion and conditional cash transfer scheme for promoting institutional delivery.
- The details of the scheme can be seen at the link given below: https://nhm.gov.in/index1.php?lang=1&level=3&lid=309&sublinkid=84
2. Janani  Shishu  Suraksha  Karyakaram  (JSSK) entitles  every  pregnant  woman  to free delivery, including for caesarean section, in public health institutions along with the  provision  of  free  transport,  diagnostics,  medicines,  other  consumables,  diet  and blood.

(b)  The  Government  of  India  has  taken  various  steps  to  ensure  assured  availability  of  all facilities to pregnant women near their homes, especially at the time of delivery in the remote areas of the country including rural areas of Uttarakhand and Bundelkhand region as given in the Annexure.

(c)  &  (d)  Government of India has not received any complaints for cases of negligence in pregnant women during their delivery in Government hospitals.

Steps taken by Govt. of India to ensure assured availability of all facilities to pregnant women near their homes, especially at the time of delivery in the remote areas of the country are as follows:

1. Over 25,000 'Delivery Points' across the country have been strengthened in terms of infrastructure,  equipment,  and  trained  manpower  for  provision  of  comprehensive RMNCAH+A services
2. Setting up of Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Wings at high caseload facilities to improve the quality of care provided to mothers and children.
3. Functionalization  of  First  Referral  Units  (FRUs) by  ensuring  manpower,  blood storage units, referral linkages etc.
4. Operationalisation of 102 services for pregnant women for providing free transport from home to facility, inter facility transfer in case of referral and drop back to home.
5. Birth Waiting Homes (BWH) have  been  established  in  remote  and  tribal  areas  to promote institutional delivery and improve access to healthcare facilities
6. Surakshit Matratva  Ashwasan  (SUMAN) for providing assured, dignified, respectful and quality healthcare at no cost and zero tolerance for denial of services for every woman and newborn visiting the public health facility to end all preventable maternal and newborn deaths.
7. Pradhan  Mantri  Surakshit  Matritva  Abhiyan  (PMSMA) provides pregnant women a fixed day, free of cost assured and quality Antenatal Care on the 9 th day of every month.
8. Obstetric High Dependency Unit (HDU) & Intensive care unit (ICU)Setting up of Obstetric HDU/ICU in the high case load tertiary care facilities across country to handle complicated pregnancies.
9. LaQshya (Labour  room  Quality  improvement  Initiative)  to  improve  the  quality  of care in Labour room and Maternity operation theatres to ensure that pregnant women receive respectful and quality care during delivery and immediate post-partum.
10. Monthly Village  Health,  Sanitation  and  Nutrition  Day  (VHSND) is  an  outreach activity for provision of maternal and child care including nutrition.
11. Information, education and communication (IEC) to promote institutional deliveries.
12. Birth  Microplanning  and  Birth  Preparedness by  Skilled  birth  attendance  (SBA) trained ANMs.
13. MCP Card and Safe Motherhood Booklet are  distributed  to  the  pregnant  women for  educating  them  on  diet,  rest,  danger  signs  of  pregnancy,  benefit  schemes  and institutional deliveries.
14. Outreach  camps are  provisioned  for  improving  the  reach  of  health  care  services especially  in  tribal  and  hard  to  reach  areas.  This  platform  is  used  to  increase  the awareness for the Maternal & Child health services, community mobilization as well as to track high risk pregnancies.