New Delhi, Oct 26 (IANS): The All India Institute of Medical Sciences here is working on a new referral policy to reduce the crowd in its emergency department.

As there is no formal referral mechanism between government hospitals of Delhi for stable patients, Delhi AIIMS has called a meeting of their Medical Superintendents on Saturday to form a policy in this regard.

The AIIMS Emergency Department is handling around 600 patients a day - both critical and non-critical cases. The AIIMS also receives referral of critical patients from government hospitals which they are not able to handle either due to lack of superspeciality departments or due to constraint of beds.

"There is no formal referral mechanism between the government hospitals of Delhi for stable patients and the patients face inconvenience having to move from one hospital to other in search of beds. To work towards patient safety and wellbeing, it is imperative to make a system of referral for stable patients between government hospitals in Delhi," the AIIMS said in a circular.

Meanwhile, the AIIMS has also decided to constitute an oversight monitoring committee and a working committee for the implementation of for paperless work in all hospital modules and reducing the crowds from January 1, 2023.

All modules of e-Hospital including integrated store and pharmacy will be implemented. As per the circular, the OPD appointments in the hospital will be doctor-based and the system would have arrangements for redistribution in the case of non-availability, to enable a reduction of the crowd.